


Free Real Estate

by solace_saphylos



Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Dungeons & Dragons - All Media Types, Original Work, Planescape (Roleplaying Game)
Genre: Accounting, Alcohol, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Alternate Universe - Office, Co-workers, Comedy, F/M, Fake Marriage, Forced Marriage, Manga & Anime, Mutual Pining, Office Romance, Pining, Real Estate Agents, Romantic Comedy, Sigil (Planescape), Slow Build, Tokyo (City)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:40:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 60,934
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25125592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/solace_saphylos/pseuds/solace_saphylos
Summary: Modern anime-esque office AU of my DnD Planescape campaign. Still contains DnD races and alludes to magic. Sweet rom-com mood!Pentu, tiefling, 24, needs to get married before she turns 25. There are only a few months left... After breaking up with her boyfriend of two years she has sworn off any more office romance! The awkward breakup has her switching her job to the smaller, cosier agency Found Dragon Real Estate. While she might feel more at home with the tight-knit cast working there, she can't for the life of her get a grip on Gaim, the gith accountant. Between his grumpy behaviour, rampant day-drinking and terminally messy desk... Why would fate designate him to be the saviour in her thankless quest for matrimony?
Relationships: Original D&D Character(s)/Original D&D Character(s)
Comments: 20
Kudos: 3





	1. A Bad Date and A New Job

Pentu observed the wineglass grace his lips as if her own happiness depended upon it. The fine dinner between them had already been finished, and soon enough a waiter would remove their plates and lay their company bare. Her date, a handsome fellow five years her senior, had been nursing his wine slowly over the course of the evening, and for the life of her she hoped he was inebriated enough by now. She drank water. Nothing but water. Her throat felt dry, and she watched his adam’s apple bob.

“Ah…” he sighed pleasantly, adoring his drink for but a moment, before shifting that adoration to her. “What a beautiful evening we’ve spent together.”

She betrayed her nervousness. “I was about to say the same. I’m happy I asked you out for a serious date.”

“Oh definitely. Those marriage meet and greets do remain impersonal and stressful.”

The waiter arrived, doing his job. Pentu offered him a quick nod of appreciation, but her date was absorbed in her. The short pause gave him time to consider, and then say:

“Say, are you absolutely certain that you do not mind me drinking?”

“No, of course not. I quite enjoy watching people around me get tipsy, even if I don’t share their experience.” she replied, practised to perfection. “It makes them a little more honest, and I appreciate that.”

“Oh, yet more wisdom from a woman.” he cooed. “Honesty, the virtue which lays the foundation for a good relationship.”

“Even more so for a good marriage.” Pentu wiped the sweat off her hands on her skirt, beneath the table where he could not see it.

He nodded and smiled, picking up his wineglass yet again to sip at the pitiful little pool it still held. Pentu licked her painted lips. Her eyes, fenced in by her sharp black eyeliner, now stared at the man with an energy of demand.

“When do you imagine yourself getting married?” she asked, phrasing arranged to be playful, but her tone betraying utmost seriousness.

“Hmm? Oh I wonder…” He pondered upon it. “Perhaps when it feels right? I’d love a summer wedding, at a point when I’m certain it’s not going to lead to divorce within the foreseeable future.”

She giggled, faking her joy. “And when would that be?”

“... It depends on who I’m marrying, doesn’t it?”

“Well, picture if it were me.”

An awkward silence stretched itself out like a lazy cat between them. With no plates to shield them it easily reached from his stained wine glass to her half empty glass of water.

“You sure are quite forward on the first date, Pentu.”

“I own that. It’s a hypothetical question, but I’m quite eager to hear your answer. When would you marry me?”

The man took a deep breath, before sighing out a strain of calculated pressure.

“I’d like to date you for at least two years before I’m settling down. It takes time to know a person, and even if I already think you are quite lovely, I don’t like to rush things like this.”

Pentu nodded. Beneath her table she clenched her skirt, and curled her toes up within her heels.

“Thank you for your honesty.”

“It doesn’t seem like you liked that answer.”

“No. Such a marriage would be too late for me.” She offered him an apologetic smile. “Would you like to split the check?”

In the dark of her apartment, thuds of violence could be heard. Right in the foyer it was obvious that she had stepped out of her heels in a pathetic hurry, and her handbag lay discarded not too far off. In the tiny living room, combined with kitchen, cardboard boxes stil lined the wall. Pentu stood, by the sole non-essential thing she had properly unpacked. It was a cylindrical martial arts dummy, in a mean red and black, standing on the floor with waterweights to keep it stable. Yet between her punches and kicks, from her still stockinged feet, it swayed and bounded in an absolute battering.

The makeup on her face was not yet disturbed by tears. She held them in, kept her tongue where it was supposed to be, but strained her lips. The violence which she subjected her dummy to was a kata of precision, but she used it to release a cry of inaccurate frustration.

A slamming rivaled the volume of her own punching, this time on her door. 

“Yes?” she asked innocently, staring down the face of a neighbour.

“What in gods name are you doing in there, missy?!” hissed the lady. “I have children trying to sleep down, and you’re being noisy as all hell!”

“I’m sorry. Please forgive me.” Pentu immediately apologized, with a 40 degree bow.

“You’re not making the best first impression, I’ll have you know.” the neighbour continued. “My children are genuinely scared. Now give me an excuse so I can explain to them that their new neighbour is not a monster.”

“I was beating up my floor boxing bag. I practice martial arts.”

“In the middle of the night?”

“Not usually. Please forgive me, I swear this will not become a habit. Something just happened, and I made an unwise decision.”

The lady stepped off, huffing and puffing with still angry objections to Pentu’s newfound residence. “You’d better not. I’ll complain to the board and have you thrown out if this happens again!”

Pentu landed face down in her cheap bed. It creaked. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't. She wanted to fight someone, but that was obviously out of the picture. After several deep breaths she crawled up and looked at her wall calendar.

A cutesy flower circled tomorrow as the first day on her new job. The black cross she put on today joined the others before it in counting down the days… In ninety six days she would be twenty five years old, and a christmas cake on the marriage market. She had to, simply had to, manage to get married before then… 

In daylight Pentu rose with renewed vigour. Despite the smudged mascara on her pillow she was one face-care routine from looking spotless and professional. All that failure washed down the drain. With minute care she polished her four pointy horns. She was fit for another fight, ready for another hunt, and not about to cry over spilt milk.

In Sigi-Lite-Tokyo there were about 40 million citizens crowding to live a good life. United through roads, trains, subways and hotspots, each and every one still sought moderate solitude within their own home. As inhabitants of a realm of fantasy, what was expected from modern housing could vary greatly in terms of commodities or even scale. Whether one was clueless and new to the city, or just seeking a new place to get cosy in the cage, a real estate agent should be able to help you find a somewhere to call your own. 

Supposedly, even the real estate agents themselves needed a place to nest and settle. Pentu stood in front of her new job with slight hesitancy. Her previous occupation had been in a large company, with several offices in attractive locales about the city centre. This outer ring was more homely but the office… Unbecoming. A modest sign read Found Dragon Real Estate, and did spell out her destination correctly. It was just hard to notice right next to the gaudy noodle shop right next doors.

A handsome centaur exited the office. Pentu’s honed senses honed in on his fantastic features, but soon rejected him as a potential candidate due to their species-incompatibility. All of this was done even before she dared question if he was a customer to her employer, or an employee. His icy blue eyes found her dark ones, as she evidently stared.

“Hello, are you Miss Pentu?”

“Yes, I am. Pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

Both of them bowed in the same fashion, notwithstanding the height difference between their stature. The air between them was professional, yet a soft welcoming one thanks to his soft charismatic smile. Incompatible or not, something about the air of such a shining white steed drew anyone in.

“I’m Bifrost, and I’d love to show you inside. I’m sadly on my way to a client right now, so I’ll see more of you later.” He turned his four hooves to leave. “Please, go inside and I’m sure Andi will be with you in a moment.”

“BIFROST!” shouted a woman, appearing suddenly in the second story window. “The files! You took the wrong ones!”

The nervous shambles of a centaur maneuvering fast to catch a falling binder was dangerous. Pentu dodged his large presence by hugging the wall, which put her right below the window-woman. She looked up, the other looked down. The two tieflings found embarrassing recognition in the other, and the situation they both had been thrust into. Andi took the plunge, and physically jumped out of the window.

Her soft landing blew up a puff of dust, and Andi now stood bowing before her new recruit.

“Welcome to Found Dragon Real Estate, Pentu. My name is Andi and I will be in charge of your training.” Andi rose, short in stature yet large in presence thanks to her leathery wings. “I do believe we’ve met at the interview, but… Please, forgive me for spooking Bifrost. I thought he was alone out here.”

“You’re asking her for forgiveness rather than me?” asked Bifrost, still nervously swishing his tail with the binder safe in his hands.

Pentu observed their meaning glares and glances, and found herself happy to find this manner of unprofessionalism. Already this place felt more familiar than her previous office…

“Thank you for your warm welcome.” Pentu said, offering relief on both of her coworkers. “I will be in your care from now on. Please take care of me!”

The very same phrases of greeting was given inside of the main office. Pentu bowed deeper before the owner of the company, and knew it to be appreciated by a low gruff from his lips.

The real estate agency had a customer friendly reception on the first floor, and kept all of their office on the second. The small building had no room to spare for separate offices, whereupon even the CEO and owner kept his desk in the same space as the other employees. 

He was a human man by the name of Wilford. From the recruitment to the interview Pentu had judged him to be a happy unmarried workaholic, in all of the best ways. This real estate agency had been built from the ground up by a man with a vision, and held true to that to this day. Found Dragon specialised in clients who felt lost in the housing market. Their speciality was nonconforming apartments, which fit the special needs of more peculiar races. 

Speaking of special needs, in the room Bifrost’s heightened, equine friendly desk was easy to recognise. Andi stood in attention at her own station next to that one, and awaited Wilford’s directions. The gray haired boss waved Pentu to the only clean desk available.

“Our company is quite small, but I recall that’s why you wanted to join us. Please, make yourself at home, and don’t be a stranger now.”

“Thank you, and trust me, I won’t.” With a ceremonial air she claimed her desk by putting her bag down with a slight thud.

“Whu-wuzz-at?” sparked a grainy voice, which startled Pentu.

The desk opposite hers, shielded off in vision by a moderately low divider, had seemed empty. The pristine cleanliness of her station was in stark contrast to the towering mess on the other side. For real, she hadn’t even realised there had been a form of a humanoid creature resting in the nest-mess for comfort until he raised his voice. Newly awoken eyes met hers in a similar mode of bewilderment.

“Gaim, this is Pentu, our new recruit.” Andi said with pride, knowing full well that she was reminding him of something he had forgotten. “She previously worked with DABU, but has come to deal real estate with us here.”

It was a gith. With dreadlocks. Pentu couldn’t even get a good reading on the age of this yellow skinned rarity. All that she knew to discern was that he was evidently tired, tired enough to be roused from a nap on his loathsome deskspace. Still, this Gaim fellow offered her a groggy smile.

“Oh yeah? Well that’s nifty, ain’t it? If you’re fit to work for DABU I bet you’ll do just fine with us small fry, won’t you?”

“Well, I wouldn’t oversell my merits.” Pentu replied. “Real Estate is a highly social trade, wherein the meeting of client and agent can vary enormously, no matter the company you work for.”

Silence seemed to tick as he comprehended what she had said. “Yeah?”

“What I mean is, I’ll do my best. Found Dragon might pose more of a challenge than DABU, and I’m looking forward to giving it my best shot.”

Gaim cracked a slow but satisfied smile. Shifting up from his dirty office chair he stood up, haggard yet functioning in his appearance.

“That’s what we want to hear. Welcome to the team, kiddo.” Soon absent he shuffled out of the room, waving lazily behind him.

Andi stepped close to Pentu with an expository excuse ready on her lips.

“He’s not an agent like the rest of us. He mostly does accounting.”

“Do we have to account for that?”

“No, he’s very competent, despite his behaviour. Now, are you ready to start your training?”


	2. Small Talk and Staples

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pentu trains at her new job. Gaim needs to borrow her stapler. There's another bad date. Found Dragon Real Estate sells an apartment to a couple of minotaurs. Andi and Pentu bond in a car.

Adapting to a new environment was something that Pentu felt confident in. What had unnerved her in the past now felt like a breeze. Ever since she moved to Sigi-Lite-Tokyo this adaptability had been honed like a sharp knife. Now she was able to slice through the challenges at her new job as if they were made of butter. All the components she needed to know were perfectly manageable when they were divided into smaller pieces.

In terms of actual work training, Andi was the key. Through tailing her around Pentu was indentured into how Found Dragon ran it's agency. Questions regarding how and why were asked whenever appropriate. Pentu compared their practice to what she had done at DABU, and discussed what could and could not be carried over. Andi proved to be a teacher who suited Pentu perfectly. Her mode of teaching fit Pentu's mode of learning.

Another vital way of adaption was socially. This seemed even easier. Small talk, getting to know each other, that kind of nonsense had recently been Pentu's forte.

One can tell a lot about someone by their answers to the question "What are your hobbies?" or "What do you do in your free time." It had become a lesser science to Pentu. Whatever one answered first was most likely their favourite pastime. Whatever they said next didn't hold any special ranking, but served to compliment or contrast the previous item. Pentu could reply to this question in her sleep at this point: Cooking and Martial arts.

Bifrost played the violin and sang in a choir. Wilford watched TV and played golf. Andi read. There are some pastimes so encompassing that they don't need a second hobby to accompany it. On some level Pentu envied that, since such an answer undoubtedly called for the conversation to devote itself to that subject in more depth. In that lunchroom she soon found out more about Andi's favourite genres, namely speculative fiction and crime novels.

"Me?" Gaim asked, disturbed at some level when he got the question. Already Pentu felt her interest shrink back at a soon to be dismissive answer. She was right, as he shrugged and said: "Nothing special really. I'm often busy, anyway."

These kinds of answers were either given by two reasons, you didn't want to get to know the other person in earnest and therefore tried to seem uninteresting; OR you were hiding something and a LIAR.

Well, despite this fraction of the science regarding to what people present as their hobbies, Pentu never held it against anyone. The short reply Gaim gave in the lunchroom hardly mattered or stood out from the rest. Everyone in the room, including Pentu were most likely liars. See, the question posed gives people a chance to present themselves as they want to be perceived. If the question had instead been "what do you spend most time doing outside of work, whether you like it or not?" the answers would have been different.

Pentu could imagine that Bifrost spent an uncomely time grooming and washing his white coat, since the road dust of the city would otherwise make it matted. Andi seemed like the kind of person who just read and read social media posts yet hardly posted herself. Wilford, by all means, probably watched TV a lot, but not as much as he fell asleep in front of it from old-man-exhaustion. Golf? That was just as add on of his to seem cultured. A couple weekends a year, tops.

Does the time spent on an activity make it a hobby? Hopefully not. Do these more truthful answers let us get to know anyone better? Maybe, but it's not what they want us to hear. It's not what anyone likes to say!

Pentu knew full well that she spent more time dating than cooking. Thanks to her thankless quest for marriage there were a disturbing amount of days when she ate awful fast food or convenience store bentos instead of real meals. Other days she desperately dined in fine restaurants without getting what she really wanted. But "dating" was not a hobby Pentu wanted to attach to her person. She wanted to be a respectful coworker who enjoyed cooking, as well as martial arts on the side. She hadn't visited the dojo in months. Nonetheless, you reply to the question with the half truth, half lie, of who you wanted to be. That way, everyone is a liar on the same terms.

"Oi, Pentu."

She quit typing on her computer with an already tried patience. Gaim was about 1.2 metres away from her, yet every time he wanted her attention he called to her as if they were five metres apart going in opposite directions. Superfluous as the simile may be, that was her verdict after one week if working in the office.

"Yes Gaim?"

"Can I borrow your stapler?"

"Don't you have one yourself?" She asked passive aggressively, already handing him the tool.

"Uhhh… Somewhere, probably." He hurried to staple his documents on the small speck of table he had to work on. The mess piled high, as always. "But it's probably out of staples anyway."

"I see." Her lips tightened in polite disdain. "Well, if you ever find it, I saw that there are refills by the supplies next to the printer."

"Oh yeah, sure, sure… But nah, I don't think I'll find it anytime soon. I'll just keep borrowing yours until then, alright?"

Above the divider their eyes met. She got her stapler back. Gaim cracked a smile, evident by the wrinkles around his eyes.

"Hey, don't worry about it. You always know where yours is, so we won't have a problem!"

"Yes, you're welcome."

"Yep, thanks."

Bifrost couldn't help but snort at his station. He glanced over at the impromptu radio theatre.

"What?" Asked Gaim, meeting the centaurs meaning glance.

"Be nice now Gaim."

"I am nice! We're cooperating! D'ye want these files unstapled?"

"No, no, not at all." Still at the verge of a giggle Bifrost turned around again. "Carry on."

The raspy voice reverberated a now well known grumble. He returned to his station, but soon enough looked at Pentu. On the other side of the divider she had begun working again, betraying no emotion of annoyance or hostility towards Gaim. All he could see were the top of her head, eyes turned slightly downwards into her computer screen. The blue light reflected oddly in her black scleras… 

He roused himself from spacing out, figuring he saw worse attention drawing features everyday in this city. Although vaguely humanoid races were the majority, the large minority of "special" creatures were commonplace enough to make any longtime citizen jaded. Gaim just found himself attentive the vast flavour found in tieflings. That melting pot of genes and demonic attraction was never predictably uniform. Andi had wings for crying out loud! That ought to make her a different species, no? Pentu's gray-scale features, except those yellow pupils, really shouldn't draw as much attention as they did.

"Real estate agent, huh? So you’ve got an eye for housing." said Pentu's date for the night. His short hair didn't flatter his oversized horns. He drank beer. "How's that for you?"

Pentu clutched her water, balancing on the tall barstool.

"Everyone needs somewhere to live, and it's quite rewarding to help people achieve that goal."

"Yeah, uh-huh." It was painfully obvious that he enjoyed her company, not because of who she was, but what he wanted to see. He had written down a preference for ‘cool business woman’ in his form, after all. Pentu played it safe, by continuing to talk about her job.

"Although, honestly it's a bit exhausting to get used to my new office."

"New? You got a transfer or something?"

"No, I quit the old one. I wanted to work somewhere else, so I'm at a different company now."

"Since?"

"I started Monday last week."

"Woooow, hahah!" The man had an ugly laugh. It felt a little as if he mocked her, masked in admiration. "And you're still out dating? I thought most people took a break when something big happened in their work life. Is your blood of Graz’zt that thirsty?"

Pentu resisted her impulse to splash her glass all over this man's face. Racial stereotyping was harsh enough, but from tiefling to tiefling it always struck closer to home. He could tell her bloodline, simply from her gray skin. Her rage crawled beneath it, betraying a pathetic blush on her cheeks.

"I am saving myself til' marriage."

"What? Seriously?"

"Yes. Now let's cut to the chase. Would you marry me before September?"

Dumbfounded. Shocked. "This September?"

"Yes."

The full reality settled in the tieflings countenance. After some thought he cracked an evil smile.

"Only if you promise to be a freak in the bedroom. I want to KNOW that me and my future wife are sexually compatible, but I think I’d be willing to take a gamble on your sweet ass. I mean, descendants of Graz’zt-”

Now she splashed the water with full force. He gasped for air, as if the mortification was already drowning him.

“Thank you for tonight love, but I won’t be seeing you again. You just reminded me to have standards.”

Hailed by his protestations and insults she left the bar. Defeat was once again lumping itself up in her throat as she called her marriage agent, at this agency. She had several. This one was off duty, and Pentu was left to vent on voicemail.

What she said didn’t matter. The heart of the matter still stuck to her as she laid in bed that night, after showering off every memory of that man. Her poor agent would need to listen to her ramble tomorrow, but at least the poor sod got paid for it. Pentu paid to be dissapointed. Still, she only had herself to blame.

Her “type” as she would define it was a serious, intelligent and calm hearted man. She had met many of those, but the one thing they had in common was that they refused to get married prematurely, rendering their meeting null. It didn’t fit their personality to do something that rash without a good reason. Pentu knew this all too well. It was her fault, since she imposed this stupid ultimatum of time on any new relation she was offered.

It had been a vital experiment to try a different type of man. She had been mean, but honest, and asked her agent to match her with someone stupid. The hypothesis that the less brainy were open to a quick marriage had been true in this case. What she had failed to take into consideration was why. As much as she sought and looked for a candidate to marry, she needed to remember that they were also looking for her. The reasons, wishes and wants of two people needed to match.

Pentu ruminated on this thought next day at work. She and Andi were politely letting a newlywed couple of minotaurs inspect a prospective apartment. The huge creatures had a habit of ducking and turning their heads whenever they walked through doors, in order to fit their horns through. In this apartment they didn’t need to. There was an air of excitement about the young husband as he roamed from room to room with a straight posture.

The woman stood in the kitchen, lovingly stroking the extra large gas stove. Pentu could tell that she was already in the mindset of imagining what number and what amount of food she would be able to cook at once on the range.

“I quite like this apartment.” said the woman shyly just when her husband passed by. “But what do you think, honey?”

The minotaur stood firm, emotion hard to discern in his bovine face. Then he stretched up both his muscular arms as far as he could. There were still ample space between him and the roof, a luxury many large races coveted. With this confirmed he spoke, sweet dreams evident in his rumbling bass.

“I want to lift my children this high, and spin them around in this home.”

His wife was overcome by joy, and physically rammed him into a violent hug. He stood firm, but nonetheless lost his breath out of both love and the force put on his solar plexus. Andi lightly and politely applauded their decision to purchase the apartment, stepping in with her perfect service voice to explain how to proceed.

Pentu smiled too, but her hand was clutching side of the large doorframe. Both of these minotaurs were united, finding their future hopes and dreams in the same space, together. Jealousy burned in her stomach. Perhaps because they found this apartment, or because they found each other. She wanted what they had so bad.

“Pentu?” said Andi, rousing her from her spiralling thoughts. “Could you hand me the binder?”

“Yes! Sorry, I spaced out there for a moment. Congratulations, both of you.” Saccharine sweet smile, professional complacency, saying what people wanted to hear. Being what people wanted to see. She felt exhausted.

In the car back to the agency Pentu spaced out again. She kept thinking of the force of that minotaur’s hug. Andi, who had noticed it before, noticed it again.

“You okay there?”

“I’m jealous.” Pentu confessed before she thought better.

“Of our clients?”

“Yes. These in particular were happy in a way which ticked me off…” she sighed, already feeling better since she told someone. With a glance at Andi she could tell the other was worried, but only on a surface level. “It’s quite unprofessional of me, isn’t it?”

“Well, we’re all allowed to have those days.” she slowed down the car to take a left turn. “I’ve felt jealous of clients too.”

“What makes you jealous, Andi?”

“Domed ceilings. Whenever we get an apartment with that kind of architecture I already know I’m going to silently hate whoever buys it.” She let out a dry, bitter laugh. “I feel closer to you already by just saying that. It’s nice to have another woman in the office.”

“You think this is a gender thing?”

“No, it’s just that Bifrost is such a goody two shoes most of the time. If I start shit talking with him about my own feelings he gets overly concerned and wants to console me. He cares, but it feels like he gets too close. Wilford, Gaim and your senior are of the opposite problem, just unapproachable.”

“Well, Wilford is our boss. I wouldn’t want to say this to him.”

“Exactly! You and me are both on the same level, and we both keep our distance from each other… That sounds wrong, doesn’t it?”

“No, I get you. At the moment we’re here to just wallow in our own undesirable feelings.” Pentu smiled. “There’s no fixing this, jealousy just is.”

Tense with discontent as the talk might be, it now had established an undertone of connection. Andi drove the car with a smile on her lips.

“So, what made you jealous this time?”

“Marriage.” After brief hesitation she finished that thought with context. “I’m hoping to get married soon myself, and seeing those who already are stresses me out.”

“Why, is your partner being difficult?” It was asked in jest, with earnest curiosity at its core. Despite working together for three weeks Pentu had never once mentioned her love life.

“Yes. We broke up because he didn’t want to get married.”

The answer dampened their spirits. Andi had time to track back and take a deep breath in, hold it and hardly let it out.

“That sure makes it difficult to get married soon.”

“Mhmm…” Pentu felt bad for laying this on Andi, but it was too late now. “I just wish we had talked about it sooner. We were together for two years before this intense mismatch of life goals was revealed.”

“... My condolences.”

“Thank you Andi.” said Pentu, entertained by the talk of her past relationship as if it was someone recently deceased. “But let’s keep that distance we praised before. Thank you for your hard work today!”

“Yes, thank you for your hard work.” Andi replied. “Actually, I was about to propose that you are done with your training now. Naturally I’m still here to mentor you, but starting tomorrow I was hoping you’d be free to take on your own clients.”

The joy sparked set everything back to normal. They were coworkers before friends after all.

“Thank you! I’m so excited.”


	3. Call Your Parents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some accounting needs correction. Pentu smells booze on Gaim's breath. Wilford is a good boss. Gaim goes out drinking with Tindré. They shoot the shit. Pentu burns her hand and calls her mom. Homesickness.

Gaim stood up in the office, loudly calling attention to himself by the act alone. Everyone stopped their work. His sour face only sought out Pentu and Andi.

“Oi… Did you even teach her how to fill out the receipts?”

Andi furrowed her brows too. Pentu was caught in the middle, confused.

“Yes, Gaim. Is anything wrong?”

“Pentu did the administration of that recent minotaur case, right?”

“Yes! Is anything wrong?”

“What the fuck have she done to the data? It doesn’t comply to our standards at all!”

Wilford let out a small grunt. Immediately Gaim noticed his complaints were going overboard, and shrunk back slightly. He seemed to sway a little in his posture. Andi took a deep breath. Before she got a chance to answer Pentu spoke up:

“We might actually have glossed over the accounting. I filled out the receipts in accordance to my old customs, from DABU.”

Gaim nodded, pointed at the issue, which happened to be exactly where Andi was standing.

“And you approved this?”

“I looked correct to me.”

“So you can’t even see the issue? Oh for fuck’s sake-”

“Gaim.” said Wilford. Just like the grunt before the utterance from their boss stopped Gaim in his tracks. Pentu, Andi, Bifrost, everyone in the office looked to him to diffuse the situation. Wilford didn’t seem bothered in the slightest, but calmly instructed: “Sit down by Pentu and teach her how to do it properly.”

Already standing Gaim took hold of his office chair and dragged it with him. The wheels whined and he sighed. Most of his hissy fit was still directed towards Andi, and he had to get the last word:

“If they can’t do it I’d better do it myself, eh? Pentu, open up that file.”

With the chair backwards Gaim hung over the backrest like a vulture. Pentu was unnerved, nervous even, but trying her best to be patient. The document loaded. Both of them got a moment of silence. Gaim inspected the ever so neat desk he never properly saw thanks to the divider. The stapler was right at the edge, close to his side.

“Alright, so starting from the top…” He pointed at the document and started directing which changes needed to be done. Pentu followed his directions. It was nowhere near as much of a disaster that Gaim’s outrage had made it seem, but more of a tangle which needed to be brushed out. Her way of filling in the data didn’t comply with his method, but all the data needed was there.

“Gaim which school of accounting do you use?”

“My own, don’t worry about it.”

“No, please, I studied a course of accounting in university, and I’d love to brush up on the material if it helps me do my job better.”

“Uh-huh.” Gaim scratched the back of his head. “Well, I didn’t go to no fancy school to learn this, so if it’s got a name I don’t know it.”

Pentu turned her head. They had just finished straightening out the receipt, but Gaim just said he… Didn’t have a university degree? Not even a business school? She wanted to ask if she had just read that statement right, but the sight of Gaim’s face stopped her. Of course not. Look at him. Would he ever attend a lecture without sleeping? How did he get this far?

Gaim let out a small burp into his fist. “Anyway, let’s go through this again. Explain what I just taught you.”

Pentu was shaken. Even as she began speaking, her mind raced in circles. She knew that smell. Gaim’s gross burp had smelled of alcohol, and it was about three in the afternoon, at work. Was he drunk? She couldn’t tell, but hurried through her explanation. He needed to correct her. When he leant forward to point at something on her screen she inhaled again. His body smelled clean, but that breath he left behind was definitely wet with drink.

What the fuck.

At the end of the day Gaim got up first. “Thanks for your hard work, everybody.”

The communal mumble of the same phrase was returned. Bifrost was on his way, and perked up. He equipped his saddle bags with more haste.

“Hey, let’s walk to the station together.”

“Nah, sorry. I’ll be walking to the next district over. Tindré wants to celebrate.”

“Oh, what happened this time?”

Before the rest could hear the answer the door shut behind Bifrost’s flank. Pentu wanted to exhale a sigh, but she couldn’t. She wanted to tell Wilford but it was no easy topic to breach. Instead she settled on whatever that conversation had left hanging in the air.

“Who’s Tindré?”

“A friend from Gaim’s highschool.” Said Wilford, nodding lightly. “She’s a lawyer, and likes to go out drinking whenever she wins a hard case.”

“Actually about that…” As if fate itself was on her side the conversation had gone exactly where it needed to go. “I think I smelled some alcohol on Gaim’s breath today.”

Wilford’s working hand stopped.

“I’ll have to talk to him about that.”

“And furthermore, the fact that he hasn’t been to any kind of school worries me.”

“That you can lay to rest, Pentu.” Wilford’s old eyes looked at her kindly. “He has been trained by me, and I trust him to do his job correctly. I’m sorry he blamed you two so harshly today for something which could easily be fixed.”

Andi nodded, accepting the apology.

“As your boss I feel a great responsibility for my employees.” Wilford continued, but his voice became heavier. “However, I can’t help all of you with everything going on in your lives. I’m sure there’s something weighing on everyone’s shoulders. I want to make sure we all create a positive work environment, to the best of our capabilities… Now let’s not stick around to listen to me preaching. Let’s pack up for today and head home.”

At a familiar bar, the din murmur of still sober conversation buzzed. Gaim entered the establishment intent to change that, already having emptied the small bottle in his pocket. He scanned the bar, not finding who he sought. Then a rattle made him snap towards one of the booths.

“Why the fuck are you sitting here? Do you want slow service all night?” he said, taking his seat opposite of her.

“Oh please, this is just temporary.” purred the bone devil with her wide sharp grin. “There was someone sitting on my seat, and I didn’t want to chase them off until I had company to claim my victory with.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Besides, people… Stare.”

Curled up, occupying more than half the couch, was the bone white scorpion tail of Tindré. Large enough to rival her body, it was a fearsome organ which she had signed papers to wield freely within the prefecture. Licensing your own existence was a peculiar part of many a creature’s life in the city. Tindré herself was dressed in a bordeaux power suit, high heels sticking out of the wide pant legs. How far up those boots went, nobody knew.

“Whatever. Congratulations on your case.”

“Thank you!” Her catlike eyes slimmed in her smile. “How’s the new girl at work?”

“That’s your first question? Not how’s work?”

“Oh but you drank like such a little crybaby when you found out that old fox was getting retired and replaced by new blood.”

“You know what, fuck you. It’s way too early in the night for this kind of banter.”

“Why? Should I contain my curiosity?”

“Yeah, have some tact and let me order my first shot.”

“But you already drank, didn’t you?”

“That doesn’t count.”

“You sure?” she teased, rattling her tail ever so slightly.

“I said, I want to order a drink.” Gaim clarified bitterly. “New girl is real talk, you’re only allowed small talk until they’ve served us.”

Tindré shrugged and stood up. As she had predicted, everyone who wasn’t a regular at the bar turned their heads. Gaim shuffled after her straight backed gait, mismatching his company completely. But in their duality, they fit together. Tindré’s ever present smile gleamed down on the strangers who sat at the very corner of the bar counter, next to the wall.

“Excuse us boys, but me and my friend absolutely prefer these seats. Would you mind giving them up for us?”

No coaxing was needed as the others retreated to another part of the bar, as far away as they could possibly get actually. Their mumbles of apology faded into the bar atmosphere. Tindré sat down by the wall. The strategic placement let her hold her tail where nobody would like to stand, pass or intrude.

She and Gaim ordered their first drinks, and remained silent as the bartender prepared, served and left them. Gaim had a triple serving of the same drink, and when he had slammed the first, Tindré spoke up again.

“So, how is she?”

“Tense like a bowstring.” Gaim replied. “The worst part is that I can’t fucking place her.”

“Oh? So she eludes you? How exciting.”

“It’s fucking annoying. I’ve been walking on eggshells around her, and I wish I could just relax.” He took a gulp of his second drink. The alcohol burned in his throat. “Really, it would have been better if Andi had switched desks, but oh no, she didn’t want to.”

“Really, it's terrible how the rest of the world doesn’t bend to your will.”

He glared at Tindré. She coyly smiled back.

“You know what, cheers to that. If only everything turned out exactly like we wished!”

Pentu sat crying on her kitchen floor. The mess of her potato gratin was splayed out like a murder case in front of her. The water in the sink was still running, and her hand was turning numb under the cold stream. She had finally taken time to cook. She was going to make enough food to last her several days. Now everything was ruined, because of a little slip of her hand. The burn hurt, but the loss of her work hurt more.

The waterspout fell silent at her command. She stepped over the hot destruction and fetched her phone. With her headphones in, the dial tone reached across half the country.

“Hi darling! How nice of you to call.”

“Mom, I’m homesick. Can you please tell me what it’s like there now.”

Her mother Valerie let out a laugh, which soothed Pentu’s soul. With the ramblings of her mom in her ear she started cleaning up her mess. 

At home the early summer heat was filled with fledgling birds, trying their wings or crying for food. The fields have their farmers crawling about them like bugs, breaking the soil to beg for one more season of growth. The air is now warm enough to leave the window open, and Valerie can hear the windchimes Pentu put up in the garden, accompanied by the wind in the leaves. Her mother went into great detail now that she became hooked on the garden, and began describing in minute detail how far on every single kind of flower had budded.

“Oh and the koi are ever so happy. I think they’ve already forgotten how ice covered their pond, for now they flock to the surface whenever I roll up. I like to feed them the leftovers from our plates nowadays… I hope everything there is actually healthy for them.” Her mother mused, before perking up. “But what about you? Are you eating well?”

“Uhh…” Pentu looked at the questionable amount of gratin she had scooped back into the form, arguing that this part hadn’t touched the floor. The part that had was now in the trash, coating the pathetic packages of her poor diet. “Yeah. I eat out a lot, but it’s all good.”

“Oh but you know that takes a lot of money.”

“Yes, yes, I know. But I just prepared a meal to last me a couple of days.”

In fact, she was sprinkling more cheese on it, so that she could cook a new crust on the otherwise finished dish.

“That’s good… You know, I really want you to come home and visit soon.”

“Me too, mom. Why do you think I called?”

“That’s good to hear. Can you make any plans yet?”

“No…” She heaved the gratin back in the oven. “I’m still adapting to my new job, and I can’t predict when I need to work weekends yet.”

Her mother hummed in slight disappointment. “Are they overworking you at this new place?”

“Oh no, not at all! If anything, there’s more kindness there than at DABU.”

“Just you know that I’m thinking about you… Well, will you come home for your birthday?”

A knife stabbed at Pentu’s heart. Would she? Or would she flee the country or drown herself at sea? Perhaps it was a little melodramatic, but without a spouse to shield her honor, she didn’t want to go home… Especially not for her birthday.

“I want to mom.” Pentu said. “It’s not yet time to plan that part of our schedule, but I’ll make sure to apply for a couple days off. Hopefully it will work itself out.”

“Let’s hope you can ride that train soon enough.” assured her mother. “We all miss you here at home. I thought I would get used to it, but my heart keeps yearning for my sweet daughter.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, darling.” Her mother let out a little giggle. “You know, I’m so happy that you called. Whenever Krev visits he always asks if I’ve heard anything from you, and now I’ll have something to say.”

“If it bothers you that much you should call more often, mom.” Pentu said, blank in her expression.

“I don’t want to nag. You’re an adult Pentu, soon to be twenty five! I really can’t keep calling whenever I wish to.”

“No, please do.”

Curled back up on the floor Pentu kept conversing with her mom until the new crust was done cooking. Her gratin was saved, and nobody would be able to tell that she had dropped it once. The children downstairs were running around, and she could hear their laughter through the floor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Are you enjoying this, and do not know me in real life? That's pretty cool. You've read three chapters already.
> 
> This fic is my easy pleasure, writing anime without animation. I hope anyone can find enjoyment reading this, just as much as I enjoy writing it. Are you catching all of the foreshadowing?


	4. Karaoke Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bifrost invites Pentu to the karaoke after work. Gaim loses a bet. Ragnhild delivers noodles from next door. A selfie is taken. The karaoke night is good. Pentu gets a call from her ex. Gaim listens in. They talk about it. Is this the start of the actual romance? Pentu decides that she loves this job.

Weeks passed on, and everything new was cooling off to become more or less routine. Pentu found security in her job, and made sure to relish each client she was able to serve. The successes of people finding houses made up for the constant routine of Pentu not finding good dates. Three nights a week on average she tried. Either it was a private dinner, or just another round of speed meeting at the marriage agency. It was exhausting, in all honesty. Whenever she was free her mind kept on thinking about her next chance, never truly resting.

“Pentu, the end of the month is coming up.” said Bifrost, with a mismatched excitement for such a bland statement.

“What about it?” she paused her eating of her quite pitiful lunch.

“Well, I was wondering if you have time to join us for an after work party. We tend to go on these every other month or so when people have time.”

“When is it?”

“This friday.”

Pentu knew she had a date that night, but with a heavy heart she didn’t look forward to it at all. Which candidate out of the hundred she had read about over the past month all blended together in her head. That could be cancelled, for the sake of her work.

“Yes, sure, I’m free that night.”

“Perfect!” exclaimed Bifrost, swishing his tail quite wide in excitement. “However, now comes the second part… We take turns choosing where to host the party, and it happens to be my turn this time around.”

Pentu nodded, already back to politely eating her food.

“Well, I don’t know if you’d like this or not, but I absolutely understand if you decline.” His handsome smile was already begging for her to say yes. “I wanted to take us to a karaoke bar. I know this great one which serves good food, and has private rooms!”

For a brief moment Pentu couldn’t help but glance around the lunchroom. Andi was obviously eavesdropping by the microwave. Gaim stood idling by the door, fiddling on his phone. Wilford wasn’t there, but all members of the office in consideration, Pentu really wanted to see them sing karaoke.

“No, please, I’d love to! I don’t go out to sing often, but it’s great fun in good company, isn’t it?”

Bifrost celebrated. Gaim let out a groan, dug about in his pocket and threw a handful of coins across the kitchen counter to Andi. She caught and collected them in a high blush.

“Gaim, why do you make it so obvious?” she hissed. “It was supposed to be secret!”

“Nah, I’m a sore loser today.”

“Did you…” Pentu comprehended the exchange. “Bet on me accepting the invitation or not?”

“No, I mean-” Andi tried.

“Yeah, all in good spirit.” Gaim interrupted, not sounding like good spirits at all.

A polite giggle from Pentu diffused the situation, and Andi soon joined the lunch table with her heated lunchbox. Bifrost was unpacking his multi-tiered bento, filled to the brim with nutrition to sustain his large body. They had hardly begun eating before they heard light steps come bouncing up the stairs.

“Hiiiii!” A teenage girl burst through their door. She was dressed in sportswear, yet covered by an oversized polo shirt with a familiar gaudy logo on both sides. The delivery of ramen in her hands was definitely delivered, right from the shop next doors.

Gaim roused from his idling, happy to see his lunch arrive.

“Damn Ragnhild, here I stood and awaited a text from Corbyn. Shouldn’t you be in school right now?”

“Nope! School holiday, bitch!” beamed the girl, and handed over the bowl with pride. 

“And you’re working? Saad.”

“Gotta get that money, you know!” The sides of her face had blue shimmering scales, and from her white hair sprouted two icy horns. Pentu really couldn’t place what race she was, and stared unapologetically. That’s when the girl noticed her, and shone up in newfound excitement. “OH! Hi! Are you the new employee?”

“Uh, yes.” After a little more than a month Pentu didn’t feel as new anymore.

“Yes! Now I don’t know if you mind, but can I take a picture with you?” Already Ragnhild was approaching, fishing her phone out of her fanny pack. “It’s so that you will be included in the unofficial, real official discount offered to employees of Found Dragon!”

“Discount?”

“Yeah, cheaper noodles.” clarified Gaim, sitting down with his serving. “The cooks owe Wilford something bad, but also likes our gang, so he cuts the prices quite good.”

Ragnhild was already by Pentu's side, gearing up with a high angled selfie arm. The petite girl didn't have much length to work with, but on the screen she framed both her and Pentu in a flattering light.

"Say cheese!"

"Cheese" Pentu obliged shyly.

"Stitches" mumbled Gaim from the other side of the table. Whatever that meant Ragnhild lost her cute smile and instead snapped a picture of he own irritation.

"Gaim, shut up! I'm trying to do my work here."

"Yeah yeah, sure. I don't even get why you need to be in frame."

"To validate that this is not just some stranger snuck onto the discount board without a good reason!"

"Hehe, he did that?"

"Yes, and they're never letting him hear the end of it." Ragnhild straightened out her posture and posed again. "Now cheese!"

The picture was cute enough, and Ragnhild happily loaded up a sticker software. "Awesome, what's your name?"

"Pentu."

"Nice, nice… There!" She showed off the improved picture, including a word-art of her name, some sparkles and a "seal of approval" complete with a cartoon animal seal.

"That was… Fast."

"Yeah I like doing this to all my photos, if they turn out good." Without even him asking she was showing Bifrost the image as well. "And it's yet another measure to ensure this image is real and belongs to the discount gang. Welcome on board by the way."

"Thank you."

Ragnhild skipped backwards towards the stairs. "I'll get back to the lunch rush. See ya’ll!"

"Bye Ragnhild." Said all three employees in chorus, Pentu left behind in slight confusion.

The lunch break here at Found Dragon could be so infinitely more entertaining than at Pentu's old job. She looked over at Gaim, who was slurping up his noodles with zeal.

"Good noodles?"

"Great noodles."

"I'll have to try them someday."

As much as the local food beckoned, Pentu's daydreams still longed more for the karaoke bar on Friday.

Bifrost breathed in, putting the microphone to his lips. The drums kicked, and his voice soared. Whatever he called warming up was already blowing Pentu away, as his angelic vocals were singing a beautiful pop-rock ballad straight into her heart. The lyrics were part of it, but she could hardly hear them. She was entranced by the simple sound coming from the centaur’s mouth. How many lungs did they have now again? Did he use them both for this craft?

A yellow hand waved in front of her face. Gaim was rudely leaning over a protesting Andi, all to rouse Pentu from her hypnotized awe. His smile was cock-sure, certain of why she had gotten lost in thought. Andi was saying something, but couldn’t be heard over the music. When Gaim had retreated back into his seat, Andi handed over the karaoke tablet to Pentu.

The room was spacious, but most of the space was sacrificed for Bifrost’s presence. As part of the craft, all of them could see how the room had been furnished to have that space for large guests, or simply someone in a wheelchair or the like. Before they started singing they had all together ordered the food they wanted. It was a parade of deep fried, sweet delights of unhealthy decisions. The party feeling was here to prevail.

The non-alcoholic drinks however, were not ordered in the tablet. They were included in the karaoke package, as the bar knew full well that people would go on singing for longer if they didn’t have parched throats. While the group did order some alcoholic drinks, everyone needed and wanted something ordinary too. To get that, they were obliged to go and get their drinks from a little station out in the corridor.

It seemed, from frequenting this place, the Found Dragon real estate team already had a solution to this. Gaim had the responsibility to get regular drinks, for everyone.

“Wilford, ginger ale, Bifrost, melon soda, Andi, orange juice” he said, used and abused enough to remember everyone’s preference. “What about you Pentu? Pick your poison.”

“Water please.”

“Huuuuuuh?” Gaim refused to believe her. He was very aware of that she hadn’t ordered anything alcoholic from the menu either. “Water? I thought this was a party.”

“No, sorry, I prefer water.” Pentu said, apologetic of her tastes. “You see, I find juice too sweet and… Sticky? It’s quite odd, I know, but I only drink water.”

“That’s weird.”

“I know, I just said so myself.”

“Yeah, but it’s really weird. Juice too sweet for you?”

“Gaim, would you just get her water?” Andi butted in, just having ordered deep fried shrimp from the tablet.

“Oh fine. Still or sparkling?”

“Still please. I don’t like the bubbly sensation of carbohydrate-”

“Geeez!”

Later in the evening, water on the table in front of her, Pentu applauded Bifrost’s great performance. He smiled, took a little bow, and handed the microphone to Gaim. The next performer mumbled something about a ‘palate cleanser’, as his song rolled up on the screen. Guitars started it off, and they were way more aggressive.

Gaim’s raspy, fried voice could technically sing. It’s just that he didn’t sound that good from the start, so to make his singing fun he adapted to a similarly grimy soundscape. Pentu didn’t know if this was punk, hard rock, metal or something she hadn’t heard of. The occasional violin really threw her off. All she knew was that it was fun. In the chorus there was a chant of shouts, which all the others joined in on. Gaim as the lead vocalist was getting loud, and they joined him in the hard energy coursing through the song.

Andi’s performance was calmer. The wistful, soulful voice which was supposed to belt out the popular song was not quite found. Andi was the mumbling kind of karaoke singer, not quite getting up there to truly use her whole voice. However, since the song was popular everyone knew the lyrics and sung along. It didn’t matter that the beefed up karaoke microphone was amplifying Andi’s mumbles, since what everyone heard was their own participation. Bifrost’s heavenly vocals even styled about and harmonized on a different level to the rest of them.

Pentu’s performance was similar. In order to not embarrass herself she had chosen the hit song of her teenage years, which had been popular nationwide. It was a peppy pop song, about all the heat of summer with no actual message except to have fun. Andi got quite excited to see it play. Pentu’s voice in the microphone was stronger, yet average at best.

Wilford did not receive the presence of a choir. He stood up straight, and bellowed out from his deep belly a country ballad which no one had ever heard before. He did it well, but ultimately sounded like every old man ever let out into a karaoke bar. It was a charming performance, and a charming song, which turned out to be quite long. During that time everyone got the chance to dig in to the food which had arrived.

As such the karaoke party went on rotation. Bifrost blowing minds. Gaim breaking the spell. Andi and Pentu singing similar yet different kinds of pop. Wilford bellowing country. It was fun, and Pentu enjoyed herself to the fullest.

The progression she was able to notice differed from member to member. Andi got more and more excited about her song choices, and many of them started becoming female duets to share with Pentu. Bifrost's songs got harder, on a technical level. That gist about warming up was true, as he just like an athlete with his voice aspired to greater heights. Wilford's songs remained mostly unchanged, always very obscure. But as the flush of beer became apparent on his face he became more and more adamant on trying to explain why these geniuses of musical talent ought not to be as obscure as they are. The loud music muffled his rants, but he seemed both aware and okay with that. Pentu tried her best to listen, in the seat next to his.

Gaim's songs got less aggressive and more happy. Now she was able to place them more easily… except pirate or Irish wasn't a genre as far as she knew? Gaim was appropriately drunk to fit the theme. In fact, with his overjoyed mannerisms, swaying stance and loud singing, Pentu wondered how he managed to get  _ that _ drunk on the few drinks he had ordered? 

"Bottoms up, your drink boy is making a run." He announced when he finished singing. Everyone's glass was near empty, and soon he got the colour coded cups back to his little tray. Andi who was up next literally gulped down the last of her orange juice for him to refill it. He appreciated the gesture with a bow. "Thaaaank you! Alright, be right back."

Andi's choice this time around wasn't a duet. Pentu leaned back, took a deep breath, and took the moment in. This was so much better than that date she had cancelled. It reminded her of the happy days at university, where she had felt like a creature neither adult nor child. To think such euphoria could be found on an after work out of all places! This was the first moment that she decided that she loved this job.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket. Fishing it up she was as fully intent on declining the call in happy irresponsibility. However, the contact ID caught her attention.

"Sorry, I'll take this call real quick." She said to Wilford before slipping out. After all, neither Andi nor Gaim blocked her path out of the couch. "Skip my song if I'm not back until then."

By the drink dispensers Gaim was having a blast. He took pride in this role of his, and happily refilled all the glasses of his peers. Here he could rest his ears for a little bit. In this public yet private space he could sneak a bit of vodka into his own glass, illegally grogging at the establishment. What sheer moments of joy.

Just as he was about to pick up the tray he got a happy drunk idea. It was a short three second fix. Those three seconds ultimately locked him out of the room.

"Hello" Pentu answered her call. Gaim perked his ears. The drink station was a half room right next to theirs with no door. 

"Pentu… I'm doing the thing." Laughed a man's voice in her phone. Words were beyond eavesdropping, but the mood and melody clear enough to even reach Gaim. "I'm calling my ex when I'm drunk!"

Pentu leaned against the wall outside the room. With a glance at her watch she remembered that it was late on a Friday night.

"Yeah… On the bright side, you haven't done it until tonight."

"I've been good, haven't I?"

"Was it hard?"

"No, not really. We… we had a good break up after all." She bit her lip, noticing the voice of a man she had loved start to quiver. He added in a whisper. "It's just that I started wondering if it was too good."

"Please, don't cry."

"I'm a drunken mess tonight, Pentu. I'm alone and I- I just started looking through old pictures. We looked so good together. We were good together."

"Mhmm."

Gaim was unapologetically listening to and trying to make sense of half of their conversation. Getting up, revealing himself and entering the soundproof karaoke room was out of the question. The absolute safest bet was to let her finish, wait some more and pretend he had been at the bathroom the whole time.

"Pentu."

"Yeah." She was sentimental now too, but not sad.

"I should have accepted your proposal, right? It would have been the easy thing to do. Now that it's lost… I'm just haunted by the happiness that could have been."

"Haunted? How dramatic… But you’re right about that." Pentu said, finally finding some bitterness. "If you're heartbroken now, then that's how I felt from the very first no."

"How can you take it? It hurts so much."

"I didn't let it define me. I let it shape me, temporarily, and adapted." She took a deep breath. "I'm in hell because of you, but I'm happier now."

Gaim took a gulp of his drink, refilling the gap with vodka.

"We were great together, and I loved you." Pentu said, preaching truth to the half sobbing breaths on the other side of the phone. "But ultimately we found out that we didn't match. If you had stayed by my side, the easy choice as you call it, it would have been half hearted, and it would have made us both miserable."

"But…"

"Listen to yourself. You're drunk, and going through a relapse of feelings." Somehow she managed to smile. "Act like the man I fell for and get over me already."

He laughed, crying still. Behind her Pentu heard Wilford's muffled singing, signalling that she had taken too long. She sighed.

"I'm happy you called. It saved me the temptation of doing it myself."

He wasn't able to answer.

"But you'll be fine. Whoever you love next will be very lucky. I would know."

"Why are you being so kind?"

"No reason." Her heart had become heavy again. "Treat others as you would like to be treated, I suppose?"

She could hear the drunken mess collect itself, with all the wet noises needed.

"Then I'll say it right back at you! Whoever you love next is going to be very lucky!"

"Thank you."

"I-I would know." The bravery faltered. "By God, I would know."

"I'm going to hang up now." Pentu couldn't stand listening to another round of sadness. "Please take care in your life."

She breathed in through her nose. Her head turned upwards to the fluorescent lights in the corridor. She breathed out through her mouth.

"Fuck."

Gaim decided to not wait. This was too juicy and stained with hurt. He was bored, drunk, and not about to sit on the secret that he had heard all of that. With the tray in hand he took a large step out into the corridor. It startled Pentu, but not too bad. The settling realisation was worse than the initial shock. Her blush was purple.

"Hhhyep." Gaim hiccuped. Awkwardly enough he pat his own shoulder instead of hers. "Don't worry about it, I think you did great. Graceful, even."

"Do you really think so?"

"Yea, shhuure, I mean… you gave 'em no chance. Total rejection. Heartbreak, fire and flames, without any like…" he contemplated what he had heard. "Well, that part about being in hell was a little mean, but otherwise you were super nice despite- yeah you get it."

Pentu looked at the gith, tilting her head. It was as if she tried to see something new in him. Preferably she wanted to find trust.

"Please don't tell the others."

"What, that you got a life?"

"No that… That I left the room to talk with my ex boyfriend."

"What's so bad about that?" Gaim once again took hold of his glass. Before drinking he added. "Shit seemed important, although messy."

"Yes but… I don't want them to think he's more important." Her gaze fell on their feet. "I'm really having fun with you all tonight."

Gaim let out a little 'heh', grinning from ear to ear.

"Hey, cheer up, drink some water."

She took her glass off his tray. The taste which hit her tongue was… Pentu covered her mouth and looked at the grinning Gaim, bewilderment having wiped all of her sadness off.

"Yeah I spiked it with a splash of apple juice." He revealed. "Like, if you don't want it sweet and sticky I figured you could take it really, really watered down? So I just frigging… Spssjh, apple flavour, it's a party. D'ye like it?"

"It's perfect."

"Sweet, now let's join the others. I bet they're all thirsty, so uh." He looked to her before opening the door. "I was in the bathroom and didn't hear anything you were talking about. Keep up that lie, and I'll cover up for ya, no charge."

Stepping right into the scene of Bifrost belting out a popular power ballad was rejuvenating. Both Pentu and Gaim could return their seats in the choir, and nobody even asked what has taken so long or why they returned together. The party was still going, and would for another hour at least. Both this cup and the next Pentu enjoyed the flavour of apple juice, watered beyond recognition. Once more Pentu settled into the feeling that she loved this job.


	5. Feuds and Noodles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Found Dragon gets a call. A feud is revealed. Pentu wants in on on it. After work she gets noodles. It's free, thanks to Xigmund's flirtations. She accepts an invitation from him. He freaks out. Memes.

On Monday, before lunch, everyone sat and worked extra silently. By his desk Wilford was taking a call, obviously talking to a landlord which they had previously had deals with. However, everything that Wilford said proved that this apartment had higher stakes than the last one. He was arguing for the case of sticking with Found Dragon, and not enlisting another real estate agency. This was absolutely unheard of at DABU, so Pentu listened with bated breath. Gaim, Bifrost and Andi were also invested, but with a familiar fighting spirit burning in their eyes. After many ifs and buts Wilford implored the landlord to call him back if he got a better offer from a competitor, because he was willing to compete.

As soon as he hung up, Andi spoke: “Where is it?”

“47th street, Market District…” Wilford crossed his arms. “You may recall the waterproof apartment we sold there a year back. The closeness to the metro station upped the price something awful.”

“Oh, I remember.” said Bifrost. Gaim grunted a little as well.

“The landlord is of the renovating kind. He has apparently spent about three years fixing up the top floor. It’s a maisonette, extra spacious… Fit for a dragon he called it.” Wilford shook his head. “He said he liked our previous service very much, but since this is the crown of his complex he will look around at other agencies as well.”

Everyone got their eyes glossed over, in collective association.

“It regards she.” Andi mumbled.

“It regards her, don’t you mean?” Pentu tried grammatically correcting, not on the loop at all.

“No.  _ She. _ ”

Everyone nodded, solemnly. Pentu was a living question mark. Wilford stopped nodding.

“Pentu, would you say that you’ve grown attached to Found Dragon over the last month?”

“Certainly. I enjoy working here, very much.”

“Then it’s about time that we offer to involve you in our company feud against Fiend Housing Solutions.” Wilford said. “I have some history with the president of the conglomerate they’re part of, Altraloth Industries… So much so that she likes to step down and take the reins whenever our agencies compete for a particularly prestigious house deal.”

“That’s…” Pentu struggled to find the word. “Eccentric?”

“That’s Shemeshka for you.” Gaim agreed, displeasure evident in his shudder at pronouncing the name. “ _ She _ is the true enemy, and if you want to know more there’s tons of gossip online… Not much of it mentions us though, but she thrives on feuds and general bullshit. The press has a lot to choose from.”

“It is possible that she calls us to a meeting soon.” Wilford stated dryly. “She is willing to try and bribe us away from that apartment, which is not going to work. Nonetheless, we have to host and attend. Pentu, would you like to participate, or is it more to your liking to stay out of this?”

The name Shemeshka was known even to Pentu, as to most likely anyone who kept a passing glance at corporate politics and gossip in Sigi-Lite-Tokyo. Altraloth Industries had enough stock and influence to be considered a super corporation, with branches reaching out to stick a finger in every available pie. DABU was also up in that big league of large power, but during her work there she had never heard of Fiend Housing Solutions. Curiosity as to why such a big corporation, and their physical president, was so interested in a small agency such as Found Dragon was lighting up in Pentu’s chest.

“I would like to participate. If anything I want to be included into what all the fuss is about.” She looked around the room at all of her peers, smiling. “You all seem so greatly affected by this, and it actually makes me feel a bit left out.”

“Wooo, peer pressure!” Gaim cheered lazily.

Everyone laughed, and went back to their work. The feud was hooked in everyone’s mind, but the day wore on. Wilford got another phone call from the landlord, and it seemed the man was still contemplating and comparing several offers. Then another phone call. It was stiff, impersonal, professional. She would come see them tomorrow morning, and have a friendly talk.

Pentu left work quite late, her stomach growling ever so slightly. By the noodle place she spotted Ragnhild, revving up her scooter. The young girl smiled and waved, but soon zoomed off down the street. Delivering ramen was no easy task, constantly pressured for speed. Soggy noodles weren’t that good, after all. Pentu thought about that. Regular noodles would taste good, wouldn’t it? With that simple desire she entered the noodle shop.

“Welcome!” called the trio of red tieflings working the kitchen.

An aroma of salt and broth wrapped the whole scene up in its warm steam. There were already a couple of customers inside, sitting at the bar or booths to slurp down their bowls of sustenance. The cooks, scarlet red to their skin like lobsters, could have been brothers. However, their characteristics differed so much, that it had to be coincidence that they all worked together. The largest was a lumbering shape, at the back of the kitchen with his hat pulled down over his eyes. The holes made for his thick yet short horns were poorly made, and one could question how much he saw under that woolen brim. For that matter, why was he wearing a woolen hat in a kitchen?

The two front runners were objectively handsome. Both of them saw Pentu enter, and adapted similar yet different modes of interest in her. The larger, medium of the whole trio, stepped back and observed the situation with a serpentine interest. The smallest, spindly and active, stepped right up to the register with a gleam in his lone eye. His other eye was covered by an eyepatch. What a fellow.

“Hey! How nice of you to finally make your debut…” he glanced upwards to the roof. “... Pentu!”

As she got up to face him on the other side of the counter she could see the patchwork collage of pictures pinned above him. So that’s where they keep the discount profiles.

“Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later.” She was ready to order without as much as looking at the menu. “I’d like a shrimp tempura ramen please.”

“Shrimp tempura…” he repeated, clicking away at the old school machine. “Plus your discount…” The machine opened to accept cash before she had a chance to see the price, and he excitedly shut the money box right back up. “But hey, it’s your first time. Dinner’s on me, baby.”

The tiefling actually twirled as he set about to work on her bowl. She was left to stand there, ready to pay, yet rejected. He cast a glance back at her, and blinked. No, actually he probably winked, but with only one eye to offer it was hard to tell the two apart. Pentu sat down, caught off guard by this sudden friendly offer.

Her mind finally kicked back in gear and observed her small chef more carefully. He had long hair, good physique, a stable job, obviously, and was intently interested in her. She would give that a shot if she got the offer at a marriage agency, so why not here? It was a pleasant surprise, to say the least. Whoever he was he was already treating her to dinner… At his own workplace.

A low chuckle to the side alerted her. The other tiefling at the front seemed pleased. He had short hair, and the most classic shape of devil horns she knew.

“So he does not repulse you.” he supposed out loud.

“No?”

“Then you ought to know his name. It’s Sigmund, with an X.” smiling to himself he let her take that in, before repeating. “Xigmund.”

“Zeth, don’t mess me up, will you!” called the tiefling in question, busy working his magic on the other side of the kitchen.

“I think he’s helping you.” said the kind, bumbling voice of the largest chef, slipping a soy egg into the bowl meant for the prized customer. “After all, miss Pentu has finally appeared in our establishment now.”

“Sh-sh-shhhh.” Xigmund rejected the big hands and their eggs, but left the one deposited inside when he noticed them. “Corbyn, you too. Shut up!”

The bowl of ramen served was pretty. All the toppings had been arranged with care, yet professional speed. The shiny golden tempura shrimps rested in the broth like delicious ducks in a pond. Pentu said her prayers, ignoring that Xigmund was literally idling in front of her as she dug in. Oh hell yeah. That hit the spot, she sorely needed this kind of food. The comfort of ramen flushed her mouth, and the size of the bowl ensured that she would be able to savour this for some time. This really beat whatever other instant ramen cups that were hidden in her trash with shame

Xigmund stroked his chin, admiring the work of a customer which is satisfied. Swaying to and fro a little he withheld his excitement enough to let Pentu take several bites before he simply had to speak up.

“Do you like it?”

“They’re great noodles.” she confirmed, echoing the review which Gaim had given when he recommended this place.

“Mhmm!” Putting on a comically flirty face he leant on the counter, infringing on her personal space. “I made those.”

“... I know.”

“So do you want to go on a date sometime? Haha-”

“Sure.”

“Just kidding.” His practised smoulder hit before he heard her reply. “Unless…”

Their gazes met. She was staring right into his eyes. He was looking at her, expecting her to look away and deny him. After about a second he received the mental report that she had already given him a reply. A positive one. Her face was expecting him to say anything, and not stand frozen in abject shock.

Taken in by his demanding arms all three red tieflings stood forcibly huddled in the other side of the kitchen.

“Fuck, she said yes!”

“Uhm, I thought that was a good thing, Xigmund.” replied Corbyn.

“And now you’re losing your cool right in front of her.” remarked Zeth.

“Well, this shit has never happened before, has it?”

With half an ear tuned in Pentu calmly ate her ramen. If anything this tactical bromance meeting gave her some space to enjoy her meal. The men stood and mumbled, whispered, talked rather loudly at times. Zeth tried to leave the huddle to accept some finished dishes, but Xigmund wouldn’t let him. The entire ramen shop was at a stand still until Xigmund was hyped up enough to return to Pentu.

“So, uh…” A light sweat beaded under his headband. “What kind of date would you like? Movies? Love hotel?”

She choked on her noodles at the second option. For a brief moment Xigmund appeared to be 200% ready to jump over the counter and give her a heimlich maneuver, but she recovered soon enough.

“No sex. I’m…” she took a deep breath, clearing her windpipe properly. “I’m not that kind of girl.”

Xigmund crossed his arms and nodded.

“Yes, yeah, right, office ladies are cool and stuff… So movies?”

It appeared these two options were the limit of the man’s meagre imagination.

“No.” Pentu leant a bit forward, taking a serious bit of eye contact with the chef. “Movie dates are only fun if you already know the other well enough to be interested. Wasting two hours in silence watching something without talking is an awful strategy to actually get to know someone…”

He nodded. She found the answer he was looking for, so she smiled and kept talking.

“I’d like to go on a date which  _ really _ showcases who you are as a person. A grand tour de Xigmund if you will, so that I can get to know you over the course of one date.” With a brief pause she added. “I hate wasting time.”

Perhaps it was all of the marriage meet and greets, samey dinners with dead-end men and lonely nights without them that was getting to her head. The much needed directness of knowing exactly what you want and saying it felt like a breath of fresh air. To make matters even better, Xigmund seemed to be taking it quite well. He was already fiddling with his flip phone.

“How’s this friday?”

“I quit the office at four.”

“Think we can meet at the station at five?”

“This station?”

“Uh, yeah, I kind of live here.” Xigmund slightly blushed. He wanted to dismiss it all and play it cool, but at the same time lay it all out in the open. The result was to lay everything bare, dismissively. “You said you wanted me as me, so I figured it’s best to show you my place, my area, my hood… Uh, you work here too right, but trust me, you don’t know this part of town like I do.”

Pentu blinked. In separate corners of the kitchen both Corbyn and Zeth were listening in. The flush red tiefling in front of her seemed like a perfectly doable bachelor. If anything he knew how to cook. Perhaps it was that exact ramen that filled Pentu with trust for this strange man she just met, but so be it.

“I’ll look forward to see you on friday then.”

He made a fist pump of success, turning away from her to hide his soundless shout. Corbyn was watching, and he got finger guns. Zeth wasn't watching, and he got a punch on the arm. In an awkward yet charming way Pentu chalked this display of glee down to the behaviour of an overjoyed puppy. It was pleasant. Puppies were manageable, and cute.

Back from his victory lap Xigmund came back to her seat at the bar. In all honesty he didn't have anything to say, but just stared at his customer eating for but a moment.

"Do you mind?" Pentu asked, politely.

"Nah, I mean… I'm just thinking about where to take you."

"I'm sure you'll have plenty of time for that when you are off your shift." She offered him a smile. "For now I'd like to eat in piece."

"Right! Sure!" He stumbled away from her, back into his job. "I'm all about that personal space, you know."

"Good."

The hearty broth of the noodles heated Pentu's belly and soul. Come what may, for now she was confident she would be able to take it on.


	6. S H E

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The King of the Crosstrade enters. _She_ is feared by Pentu. Wilford and Gaim tell her off. _She_ leaves, with cryptic intentions. Then there's business as usual. Then Gaim's computer breaks. He begs Pentu to save him from this untimely disaster. She goes to meet an angel.

Shemeshka rolled up in a black car with tinted windows. Her parasol bore a veil which hid her from the thighs and up, as she sashayed into the agency like a graceful mushroom. Pentu held the door for her, and flipped the open sign to closed. No customers could wander in to this meeting, set to be held at the reception at the ground floor.

In a one swooping motion the yugoloth unveiled her true self in front of the Found Dragon crew. Her vixen face was vixen to the degree of an actual fox’s visage. Her furred features continued all over her body, with claws as nails and a fluffy tail swaying through an opening in her kimono. Blonde hair sat like a wig on her animal’s shape, and was neatly arranged to suit the latest fashion with a jeweled hairpin on display.

“Wilford~” she called out, walking up to offer her hand to the old… Friend. While she offered her hand to be kissed, he sternly brought it down to be a regular handshake. Her sharp teeth gritted in her smile. “How sweet to be back in your little shack. Say, have you done anything new with the place since last time?”

“A little. Nuthin’ special.” Wilford replied. His gentlemanly behaviour obliged enough to pull out the chair for the yugoloth to sit down on. “Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to come visit.”

“Ah, you know I do this for fun, darling.” she dismissively said, waving a fan she had already procured from her obi. “Besides, is real estate any fun at all without any competition?”

Pentu stepped forth and put down tea for  _ she _ , and the shudder of fear in her spine made it seem natural to attest that nickname to such a character. Even if she hadn’t known who this fox-lady was, the mere presence of her put Pentu on edge.  _ She _ was not to be trifled with, yet here she was in an active feud with the Found Dragon company. Shemeska seemed entertained.

“Is this the new recruit?”

The purple eyes pierced Pentu. The tiefling felt herself flinch, deep in her abdomen, but didn’t visibly show it thanks to her training in martial arts. The absurdity kept placing her on edge. Why was she breathing as if she was in a battle stance while having a meeting at work?

“Myes, this here’s Pentu. She came to us from Dabu.” Wilford dryly said, seated opposite Shemeshka on the table.

“A pleasure to meet you.” Pentu clearly said with a proper deep bow.

“So you didn’t pick another cat up from the street?”

Gaim chuckled. He sat down, putting a stack of papers down with a thud.

“I wouldn’t call myself a cat, but I’m doing just fine, thank you.” he said, opposing  _ She _ without any visible fear.

Shemeshka’s gaze turned a different temperature as she looked at Gaim. There was an uncomfortable silence. Pentu was seated now as well, but wished she wasn’t. If she had still been serving everyone tea she could have at least made some slight noise with the tray. The tension between the gith and the yugoloth could be strummed like a guitarr, but it made no nice music.

“Gaim.”  _ She _ finally spoke. “Has your hair gotten longer?”

The question caught the Gith off guard. “Uh… It does that, with time, you know.”

“Yes, time.” Shemeshka turned back to face Wilford. “I do suppose every fruit matures with enough time. Would you call him ripe, Wilford?”

“Please do not discuss Gaim like he’s a pear.” Wilford concluded, completely working against himself by assigning which fruit Gaim would be. Pentu held back her a smile, as she could vividly picture Gaim’s spotty yellow skin to be a pear’s. Wilford harked his throat. “So, about the dragon’s den.”

“Ah, how lovely. I was about to refer to it as such.” Shemeska’s claws started tapping the desk. “Our estimated commission is 20%”

“Funny, ours is 10%.” Gaim pointed out in his papers.

“10? Are you that desperate to out-bid me?”

“No.” Wilford smiled. “We think it will be profitable.”

“Pah! Ever so hopeful.”

“The apartment is really unique, even in our own company history.” Pentu interposed.

“We know, wallflower! But honestly? 10%? How much do you think that place will even sell for.”

Wilford laid down the estimated price. It was a lot, enough to fit the potential dragon which everyone expected to purchase this apartment. Shemeshka on the other hand scoffed.

“That’s way too high. It will go for two thirds of that, and with 10% you will be left with a laughable commission.”

“That I am not so sure about. I expect multiple parties to bid enough to hike the price up that high.”

“Well, maybe, if there was an appropriate real estate agency responsible for the deal.”

“If you say so.”

Shemeshka’s ear twitched. The debate started, going over the actual price of the apartment and absolutely dissecting every detail of it, either speaking for or against the potential price. Gaim could join in on the conversation sporadically, citing facts and factors from his papers. At the end of it all, Shemeshka’s patience was wearing thin.

“Shush! You are bold to have a commission half the rate of ours. Fiend Housing can not afford to lower their commission, due to reputation alone!”

“I am well aware of your reputation.” said Wilford. “I have to be since you care to visit so much.”

“Very well.” The yugoloth closed her fan. The discussion took a sharp turn. “I will pay you 10 million under the table to leave this dragon’s den to Fiend Housing solutions.”

Pentu’s stomach dropped. 

“No can do.” Wilford replied calmly.

“15 million.”

“Nope.”

This bickering went on, and Wilford continually rejected one outrageous bid after the other. Gaim sat and observed the battle like a casual fan of ping pong. Pentu watched it happen as if she had never witnessed ping pong in her entire life, and the ball was on fire. When her mouth actually opened in horror, Gaim gave her a slight kick under the table. It snapped her out of it. Distracted by his act, and caught up in his meaning eye, Pentu composed herself. Gaim smirked.

Then he pushed his chair back, put his feet on the table and groaned loudly. 

“Can’t we give it a rest? It’s a damned given that Wilford won’t take any bribes, so why don’t we try and get on with our day already?”

Insulted, intrigued, Shemeshka growled at the back of her throat.

“So you have kept your habit of misbehaving?”

“Aren’t you the same?” Gaim asked. “Trying to bribe us in broad daylight?”

“Money is not the only valuable currency in this world…” she replied, opening her fan once more. Hidden behind the delicately painted fabric, she reclined back in her chair and observed the scene. Wilford was stout as always. Pentu’s fear was nothing to utilize just yet. She stood up. “But Gaim has a fair point. I will try and get on with my day… After all, it is still up to the landlord to pick which agency he prefers.”

Wilford let out a grunt of approval, and that appeared to be the end of that. Pentu once more got something to do, helping Shemeshka arrange her exit out of the shop. Gaim gathered his papers with a lazy attitude. The yugoloth took some long looks at both the young employees.

“Well, if we ever need to speak of this privately again, I expect the three of you will be of the same opinion as now.”

“That you can count on.” Wilford replied adamantly. “You’re welcome back, whenever there’s a need.”

Just as suddenly as she had appeared,  _ she _ was gone again. Pentu sat back down and took a deep breath.

“I hardly helped at all.”

“Pentu, don’t be hard on yourself.” said Wilford. “You spoke when you had something to say.”

“Besides, it was your introduction session on this feud.” Gaim added. He scratched himself behind his ear. “It takes some time getting used to.”

“I still can’t believe someone with that much power just… Comes here. To try and bribe us.”

Wilford walked over and pat her shoulder. The fatherly appeal of this boss was in full swing as he looked down on his employee.

“Don’t worry too much about it. Let’s return to our real jobs.”

Business as usual that day had a fresh air to it. Most notably, Gaim was happy. His encounter with Shemeshka that morning made him cheerful, active even, as he went about his work. That was particularly good, since it was the day when he was to send in the quarterly report for the company accounts. By lunch he said that he was almost done.

After lunch Pentu remembered that it was a Wednesday. Gaim had a habit of leaving work early on the regular once a week. With that in mind she glanced over the divider to see him earnestly clicking away at the quarterly report.

“Aaaaand save-” he announced. His computer made a noise. The screen went black.

The panic set in within the minute. Gaim stood like a picture of stress in the lunchroom, calling the IT support company with his foot tapping. When he returned to the office he walked as if he had returned from a funeral.

“What did they say?” Pentu asked.

“They have no idea what happened… They advise me to leave it be until tomorrow when they can come look at it.” he replied with a thousand yard stare.

“What about the report?” she asked once more, taking a glance to Wilford.

“Yeah… What about it…” Gaim snapped out of it. “FUCK!”

He ripped open a drawer on his messy desk, collapsing a stack of papers on top, and retrieved a full size bottle of brandy from it. He chugged from it right front of his boss and his coworker (the latter singular, as Andi and Bifrost were attending a conference that day). Pentu stared. Wilford seemed to sigh silently.

“You!” Gaim called out and pointed a finger at Pentu. “Let me borrow your computer and write it all up again! I’ve written it once, I can write it again!”

“Me? What about the other’s?” panicked Pentu and pointed to the empty desks in the room.

“I don’t know their fucking passwords and I’m too pissed to call and ask.”

“Do you have a backup?” interjected Wilford.

“Barely! I will just have to wing it, record time!” Bottle still in hand Gaim rolled his chair around. Pentu was removed from her station, chair and all, to make space for the rampaging accountant. Gaim plugged in his USB drive and immediately got to work in excel.

Left without a computer Pentu looked to Wilford.

“Should I… Go?”

“Do you have any more work for the day?

“Nothing that can’t be delayed.”

“Then go.” Wilford’s moustache quivered a little, eyes steeled on Gaim. “But it’s wednesday, isn’t it?”

Gaim stood up, screaming in response. “SHIT!”

He turned to Pentu, with desperation in his slim brown eyes. Like a man begging for a drop of water in a desert he bowed to her.

“Can I ask you for a huge favour? I promise I will make it up to you someday, but please fill in for me just this once!”

That was how Pentu found herself in a foreign elevator, pressing the button to the sixteenth and highest floor of a skyscraper. In her hand she held a hastily written note, signed and stamped by both Gaim and Wilford to confirm her identity. When the elevator doors dinged open, she entered the Avian Daycare Centre for Inner Sigi-Lite Chicks.

Raising a child in this city was an art onto itself, and all childcare facilities had to fit into niches which motivated parents with money to support them. Therefore one might find a daycare specialised for children with the ability of flight at the top of a skyscraper like this. The inside rooms were colorful and intuitive, with domed ceilings to ensure more aerial space. Immediately from the entrance Pentu could look out at the yard-imitation patio with trees and bushes, along with the safety net put up as if the children were living inside of a baseball stadium.

“Hello, I am a coworker of Gaim, who usually comes and picks up Kei. Something urgent came up at work, and he has asked me to fill in for him today.”

The daycare teacher looked over Pentu’s note carefully, took a copy of her ID and called the Mother of Kei to ensure that Gaim had alerted her to the switch-up already. Everything went through. Pentu breathed a sigh of relief as the teacher went away to fetch this Kei, supposedly “like five years old” according to Gaim. She vividly pictured his desperate face as he felt the need to reassure her that the child was not his. He just knew their mom, somehow, end of story, please hurry along and pick them up.

“Hi!”

Pentu perked up, and came to witness an actual angel. The child came running towards her, redhead with soft curly locks, bright joyous eyes and white wings like a dove’s. Pentu was stunned, even more so as the child immediately hugged her legs without the slightest notion of stranger danger.

“Mimi said you’re a friend of Gaim. I’m Kei. Nice to meet you.” said the deva, hiding their face in Pentu’s pencil skirt. There was a poignant paradox of clinging already, yet still acting shy in front of this new stranger. Eyes cutely enlarged Kei turned their head upwards. “Will you take me home?”

Pentu replied, hazy in her own recollection of what she said. Some fantastic sense of destiny told her that this child was valuable, as if worth more than the entire world in love. If she had met Kei, so trusting and pure in the street, she would immediately be compelled to adopt them and keep them safe from all harm. Her tiefling heart was already overflowing with demonic blood, pulsating with willpower to do something wholesome and good.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, our dealings in the real campaign with Shemeshka are nowhere near as nice as this reiteration. We owe her three favours, and that's my fault :^)
> 
> Anyway, boot up Yotsuba&! in your memory because next chapter will be all about how fucking cute Kei is.


	7. Babysitting with Boxing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pentu and Kei ride the train. They shop for curry. Walking home takes time. Kei hugs a boxing bag. Pentu teaches Kei how to hit properly. Gaim has dinner at Pentu's apartment against his intention. Pentu shows off her martial prowess. Gaim and Kei say goodbye. The pining starts for real.

Pentu and Kei held hands on the train home. Kei was very busy looking at everything and everyone around them.

“Kei, what does Gaim usually do when he picks you up?” Pentu asked, making up for the fact that she never got to ask Gaim himself.

“Usually?” the child had calmed down significantly from the first meeting by now. “Well, we ride the train, walk past the shops, pet a dog if we meet one, and wait for my mom to pick me up from his house.”

“Do you eat anything?”

“Oh! We do! You’re right.” Kei giggled. “We eat dinner. He makes some for me.”

This layout and schedule seemed doable enough to Pentu. After all, she was confident in her cooking, and this Kei was such a literal angel that she didn’t think there would be any trouble.

“I can make you dinner too, but we have to go shopping first. What do you want to eat?”

“... Cream puffs?”

“That’s a dessert.”

“Then curry!” Kei hopped off their seat in the train car, right as the ride slowed to Pentu’s station. “We’re here. Time to go off the train, right?”

“Y-yes.” Pentu felt strung along, as she followed the child’s lead. “How did you know it was the right station?”

“It’s Gaim’s station! He lives here, and we’re going home to his house.”

Pentu didn’t know. On the platform she had to stop Kei, crouch down and explain that Gaim was very busy at work and wouldn’t be able to leave until later. That was why they had to go to Pentu’s house. Kei blinked, and accepted it without any further questions.

At the store it took them half an hour to gather all the ingredients for curry. The fresh produce section itself took twenty minutes. Kei wanted to go around and greet all of the vegetables, prove to Pentu that they knew all their names, and then pick the very best veggies to have for dinner. The tiefling was used to grabbing what she needed and going, and had to slow down her pace significantly to match the child’s.

On their way home Kei wanted to carry the bag, but also put it down and check out the gacha capsule machines. Then they did meet a dog, which was pet very properly with consent from the owner, and Kei had completely forgotten about the bag by then. Pentu followed along still, keeping track of that nothing was left behind. At the park Kei climbed to the highest point of the jungle gym, and then asked Pentu to catch them as they flew down with their wings. Gaim always did, Kei argued. Pentu got to hold the angel-child for a moment. The light, beautiful body weighed nothing in her strong arms. Once again she felt compelled to hold on and never let go. Did Gaim really spend every Wednesday afternoon with this child?

Kei gasped as they entered Pentu’s apartment. The dummy on the floor was apparently completely new to them.

“Boxing bag! Upside down!” they called out and hurried to hug it.

“You can play with it however you like.” Pentu thought for a moment. “But no flying indoors please.”

“Okaaay.”

Pentu stayed in her kitchen, overlooking Kei’s independent playtime from it. It was in times like these that she appreciated the semi-open floorplan of her apartment. The kitchen and the living room were more or less the same room, half a kitchen counter mixed with a bar counter as the only divider between the two areas. While she made curry Kei tried to figure out all the thousand ways one could play with the boxing dummy.

At the start all of them were pacifistic. Kei only hugged and lightly pushed, seeing how much force was needed to bend the big tube. This occupied them for a long while. By the time most ingredients were chopped and in the pot Kei attempted their first punch. It hurt them, which alerted Pentu.

“Here, let me show you. You’re holding your fist a little wrong.”

Crouched on her knees Pentu instructed Kei through the basics of stance in her martial art. From the proper fist, to the posture, to the footwork, Kei was soon placed as a small angelic warrior.

“Try punching again.”

Kei put on their war-face. “Hiya!”

“Very good!” Pentu cheered. “It didn’t hurt now, did it?”

“I felt stronger!”

“Yes, you did. It all starts in the stance. Why don’t you practice some more?”

As Pentu finished up the curry Kei was completely absorbed into beating this dumb, mute enemy which moved funny when struck. The thought did cross Pentu’s mind… Was it ill advised to teach a small child how to  _ properly _ play karate-ninja-punch? Well, she dismissed it with the hope that Kei would know better than to punch a real person.

“Wow!” Kei gasped over their plate of curry. The spoon pointed right at the cute shapes Pentu had cut the veggies in. “You made flowers and hearts!”

“That I did. Now please, dig in.”

Pentu was prepared to say her prayers in solitude, and for the child to devour the food without any second thought. It surprised her to see Kei clasp their hands together just as she did. After that brief pause, Kei finally gave in to their hunger and pounced on the curry like a cute lion on the cute savannah. Pentu’s heart was melting, bleeding out in mild curry.

Gaim approached the apartment complex with heavy steps. The note he held was nothing but an address, flat number, and he was ever too thankful that he didn’t need to get past some doorman or use an intercom. Another thing to be thankful for was that he didn’t need to ride the train again to get home… He never asked where Pentu lived, so this was all a pleasant surprise.

What wasn’t pleasant was his empty stomach filled with nothing but emergency brandy. He stopped at the staircase and heaved. Not that he puked, but he took deep breaths trying to find some confidence. She knew he had been drinking. What the fuck would she think of him showing up to take care of a child, still tipsy? It didn’t count that he was sorely sober when his computer broke.

“Is there a problem sir?” asked the downstairs neighbour, standing guard in her own door frame.

Gaim immediately found the strength to ascend the staircase. “Nope, none at all ma’am. Have a good day.”

The hawk eyes of that mother felt like they were still at the back of his neck as he knocked. Meeting Pentu now was the frying pan compared to this oncoming fire. Gaim straightened his back and put on his best sober face.

“Oh. Welcome! You’re early I’d say.” was the first thing Pentu said, not angry or distrustful in any way. She opened the door wide, to let him into the apartment.

“Yeah, of course I hurried. Thanks a million times by the by, uhh… Is Kei ready to leave?” Gaim didn’t move an inch.

“Not at all, we’re in the middle of dinner. Come on in, eat with us.”

“Is Gaim here? Hurry, there’s curry!”

Thus, against his intention, Gaim found himself having dinner in Pentu’s apartment. Kei did all of the talking, trying to recount the day’s happenings as closely as possible, to make Gaim feel as if he had been there himself. This gave Gaim time to hide his drunken state by carefully consuming as much curry as he could. Solid food going down to his stomach did suck up a lot of alcohol in his blood. Besides, it was delicious.

“... and then when I had hugged the baggie enough and told him sorry beforehand, Pentu showed me how to punch without hurting my hand!”

“She did?” Gaim quirked an eyebrow.

“Yes! And it didn’t hurt at all! I felt like a superhero, and baggie was like my mentor. I could hit him as much as I wanted, and then hug him again.”

“Huuh… But wouldn’t Pentu be your mentor since she taught you?”

“I don’t know. Is she any good?” Kei turned to the tiefling, caught up in a question they hadn’t thought of before.

Pentu had already finished eating, not occupied with speaking at all. The new question made her giggle. “Why does it matter if I am good?”

“Because the mentor in the cartoons is always stronger than the hero!” Kei explained with zeal. “Can you beat the baggie?”

Gaim and Kei sat silently, eating their curry as they anticipated her move. Pentu had changed into sweatpants, and stood poised before the boxing bag in a battle position. She had not watched all that many cartoons, but could tell by the look in Kei’s eyes that she had to make this cool.

“I will batter the bag quickly.” she said firmly. She thought of the neighbour downstairs. “It will be loud and sudden, so I will only do it once.”

Both Gaim and Kei nodded, accepting the cool promise with all of their hearts.

The barrage, specifically a chain kata Pentu knew to look the coolest, beat the bag with strong force. Kei gasped as it swayed much farther than they had ever managed to bend it. Gaim stayed specifically silent, impressed by the range of motion in his otherwise stiff coworker. Swinging kicks and quick punches came to an end, with the bag swinging significantly on it’s weighted base. Timed with a sway forward, Pentu bowed to the bag as it bowed to her.

Kei applauded, too stunned to voice their cheer. Gaim did the same. Done with her show Pentu bowed to them as well, taking that warm fuzzy feeling to heart.

Gaim stood with Kei’s hand in his, looking back at Pentu with a few too many words on his mind. He had sobered up, significantly, but still feared making a fool of himself.

“Uh, thanks. For the food. I already owe you for taking care of Kei.”

“It was very fun actually.” Pentu waved to the now tired deva. “I can cover for you again if the I.T. demons place another curse on you.”

“Heh, let’s hope not…” Gaim glanced down at Kei.

“Bye master Pentu.” said Kei, rubbing their eyes with a smile.

“Bye Kei. Remember to only use your powers for good.”

“I will!” Kei turned and tugged at Gaim. “Now come on. Let’s go meet mom.”

“Yeah, let’s.” The excuse to leave finally presented itself. Gaim couldn’t deny that impulse to linger, and instead turned fast to walk off. “I’ll see you at the office tomorrow, Pentu!”

“Bye Gaim.”

Pentu stood in her doorway, lingering herself as she watched Gaim walk down the stairs. She could see their shadows in the yard as they exited the premises. The warm summer evening made it easy to just stand there and think. With all his faults, that man did have a responsible side to him. Was Gaim a potential husband?

The thought came like a shooting star in the night sky. It burned beautifully, but was ultimately lost to the darkness. No, she could never just up and ask him, not when there’s just fifty days left until her birthday. He would say no, just like everyone else, and then be even more cold to her at the office. She didn’t want to live through that embarrassment at Found Dragon. The place was much too wonderful to be weighed down with her awful fate.

She crossed off yet another day in her calendar.


	8. The Worst Date Yet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pentu is twicefold rejected at a marriage agency. The worst date of the century commences. Xigmund makes a fool out of himself. Pentu feels like the bigger fool still. There's baseball.

“So do you like me?” she asked.

The blonde satyr blushed. As a man attending a marriage agency’s meet and greet he was mellow and sweet. Pentu saw enough connection and kindness in this man to try.

“Judging by these few minutes, I’d say yes.” he replied. The shyness about him felt like a flashback to middle school. “Do you like me?”

“I do. But that’s why I want to be open about the catch about me. Were it not for this one thing I wouldn’t be here.”

“O-oh?”

Pentu’s agent was idling, observing all of the guests try and connect. She spotted Pentu putting on a serious face, and conversely Pentu’s match shrink in interest. A cringing sigh escaped the woman who was getting tired of Pentu’s bullshit.

“Before your birthday? And that’s in…”

“Roughly fifty days.” Pentu confirmed, before he had a chance to make a headcount. Her smile became a tiny bit more apologetic when she added: “I’m sorry to trouble you, but do you think that’s possible?”

“I don’t know… I’m new to this, and I expected it to take more time. Fifty days is quite the limit.” The satyr shuffled in his seat. Then an idea popped into his horizontal slit pupils. “But have you considered marrying someone who’s also desperate for marriage?”

“Like who?”

“Well, my first thought is someone clueless who wants citizenship in the cage, oh- or someone who needs someplace to stay? Basically any immigrant who is short on time.”

The kindness of these thoughts made Pentu warm inside. But that warmth never penetrated the cold blanket of dread of what reactions that would bring in the long run.

“That might be possible. But I don’t think my family would approve.”

“Would they approve of you marrying me?” The satyr quirked his head.

“Yes. I mean, if you don’t have an ulterior motive such as citizenship it’s easier to spin a tale of sudden intense love.” she said, fully believing what she claimed. “It might still be outrageous, but… It’s a bit more innocent. I dread them ever asking if I got into bad business here in Sigil, forcing me to marry someone I didn’t love.”

“But if you don’t love-”

The bell rung, announcing that it was time to switch partners. The cute satyr man was snapped shut like a clam, and he apologetically said his goodbyes and moved on. Their conversation proved to be the only worthwhile one that Thursday evening. The rest of the men passed in a blur. Pentu put her bet on matching with the satyr again, but he had gotten mutual interest from a human woman instead.

As Pentu was moving out of the locale her agent hurried up to her.

“Miss! Uhm, how did it go tonight?” She knew full well how it went, behind her fake smile.

“... About as usual I suspect.”

“Yes, about that.” The agent corrected her blouse. “I am wondering if our agency truly has what you seek. You have been our customer for a long while now, and it saddens me that you have not found anyone yet.”

Pentu remained silent, clutching the strap of her bag.

“So, well, please don’t misunderstand my intentions, but I am worried for you. Have you considered looking for love in other lanes of life?”

“I have. I am going on a date tomorrow. I hope that this one might be it.”

It wasn’t it. Pentu stood at the station, and it was quarter past five. She felt stupid, ugly and naive, having left work in a hurry to change her clothes and makeup. Xigmund the ramen chef was nowhere to be seen. Solemnly she decided that if he didn’t show up within five more minutes she would go home and binge on dark chocolate ice cream… By the time she had made that promise she was sorting through the brands in her head to choose which one to treat herself with.

“Heyyyy!”

She turned her head. Red like a stop sign, Xigmund was calmly walking towards her, without any sign of hurrying at all. Out of his work uniform of gaudy logos and aprons, he dressed like a gaudy gangster. The loose hawaiian shirt had a faded pattern of fish on it, and didn’t match all too well with his skin, hair, or eyepatch. His cargo shorts had cargo, some pockets bulging. Pentu already felt overdressed.

“I-”

“Ap!” he interrupted her, snapping up his flip-phone. “Ahhh… Fifteen minutes? Yeah, that seems about right. I made sure not to pay attention to what time it was, because you know what? I rarely do!”

Pentu stared at him, at a complete loss for words. She contemplated ice cream once more. Xigmund’s smug grin widened.

“What? Didn’t you ask for a chance to  _ really _ get to know me? I’ve thought about it, and yeah, this is the most honest I’ve been with any girl, honestly!”

“Oh… Thanks. This actually helps me.” Pentu replied. “I did say that I hate wasting time, right?”

“That you did.” the man was puffing up his chest like a pride puffin. He offered her his arm. “So why don’t we get this date on the road? Shall we?”

In a split second Pentu’s hopeful heart made the wrong decision. By the time they were walking away from the station her escape of ice cream and solitude was long gone. Xigmund was overjoyed by it, striding each step as if he was in a soda commercial.

“So… What do you have planned for us today?” Pentu pried.

“No idea!” he said, beaming. “I never plan anything, so I figured the date would be more authentic if I stayed true to myself. But as I promised, this is my area! Let’s see what’s going on!”

Not much was going on. They made it several blocks with nothing but small talk. She spoke about being from the countryside. He mentioned he had been an orphan. Despite her interest he waved it off, since the orphan-status is moot as soon as you turn into an adult. Just like how Pentu stopped being a country bumpkin when she went to university in a city. They stopped at a vending machine to get something to drink. Pentu enjoyed still water. Xigmund had a coke.

For being a terribly calm and collected date, Pentu found herself enjoying it. Xigmund kept their talk rolling, often able to divulge into small short stories of the area. That’s where he twisted his ankle during parkour. That’s where he and Corbyn used to light up fireworks. The lady in that house always got furious.

“Oh! Oh! And this here bar! Here’s where I got absolutely wasted the first time in my life!” Xigmund proudly presented. “You want a quick drink?”

“No, sorry, I abstain from drinking. But if you’d like one I wouldn’t mind seeing what the bar looks like from the inside.”

They approached the local hole in the wall. Pentu had seen many of these littering the city, with their small interiors often being occupied by the same ten patrons every night. Nobody without any business there, at least as far as Pentu knew, ever entered them.

“Yo, yo! Your noodle boy is back!”

A bunch of fat men around a round table stopped talking. An open briefcase in the middle of them was rapidly shut. Their aura exuded mistrust, probably due to the very  _ legitimate businesses _ they had been busy discussing. The moment they recognized Xigmund there was a collective cringe among the company.

“So you are.” said the bartender politely. He was a gray tiefling, old enough for lines to mark his handsome face. “What brings you here, Xigmund?”

“Ah, just showing this cool chick around.” Xigmund leant on the bar. “Didn’t mean to linger too long, just have a shot for the road. Are you old fellas alright?”

The mafia men grumbled and mumbled amongst themselves. Nobody took any particular note of Pentu, dismissing her presence as nothing more than Xigmund’s plus one. Pentu didn’t mind. The lack of attention to her gave her ample space to properly fear the weight of the situation. As if the briefcase on the table wasn’t obvious enough of the criminal ties, this small locale had absolutely no reason to have a round table! The fact that they did was only more suspicious.

Xigmund seemed blissfully ignorant of the danger Pentu perceived. The lack of a response from the group spoke a thousand words on their unmentionable subject, which Xigmund properly picked up on. “Come on boys, are you still mad about the eggs?”

The mumbles and grumbles stopped. Whatever ‘eggs’ Xigmund referred to it was grave enough to make every single man stare daggers at the red tiefling. On the counter the bartender set down two shot glasses, and filled them both with clear vodka.

“Please, Xigmund, on the house.” said the old tiefling, seeking to diffuse the situation and get rid of the intruder. “For your date too.”

“Ah, no, that’s fine she doesn’t-”

Pentu took the shot and slammed it with no hesitation. The strong alcohol burned in her throat something awful. Xigmund looked to her break of character with hope and adoration.

“Hurry up.” she said, holding back the fumes. “Let’s go.”

The Xigmund who left the bar was a different kind of cheerful compared to the Xigmund who entered. His shot of vodka was warming him up from the inside, just like his newfound appreciation for Pentu. To think a girl would fall into questionable behaviours around him this soon? His bad influence soared with pride.

Pentu was the opposite. The heat of her alcohol made her feel sick. On the upside it worked against the chills in her body.

“Xigmund, who were those people?” she asked.

“Oh those? Just some local businessmen. I’ve worked part time for them loads, before the noodle joint took off.”

“Do you have a criminal history?”

“What, with the cops?”

“Yes.” Pentu clenched her teeth. “I rarely ever have to ask my dates if they do, but I think this is pretty important. Do you have a record?

“Pfffsh, nah.” There was a pause. “I mean it’s not even that long, so it’s not worth bragging about.”

Pentu walked. She walked faster than him, fully intent on walking away. In her head she was heading towards the nearest train station. If her family got word that she had dated, much less married, a gang member they would never let her hear the end of it. This was not it.

“Hey, hey, heyy, why are we going so fast?” Xigmund laughed, keeping up with her heeled escape.

“I was thinking it’s about time I went home and-”

“I get to come along? Wow, one drink sure did wonders, am I right?”

She turned sharply on her heel. Pentu was ready to stop, stare this man down and angrily reject him on this empty yet public street.

That was not what happened. One drink did wonders, to her balance at least. Her sharp turn made her trip. The alcohol in her blood was getting to her head, and she threatened to fall flat. Xigmund stepped forth and caught her.

So instead she found herself in the arms of the man she intended to reject. A flush of blush rose to her cheeks. The moment she started struggling to disentangle herself he helped her up on her feet and let go.

It was a tense, wordless staredown. Xigmund understood enough body language and expression to see what was happening. Pentu was not going to sleep with him. She might go home, but before that he had a chance to convince her to stay. He knew what embarrassment and alcohol could do to a woman. The vodka swimmed around her furrowed eyebrows, and softened her judgement.

“Uh…” Xigmund started. “You feeling alright there?”

“I-...”

“When was the last time you drank?”

“Sometime in my early teens.” She looked away and massaged her temples. The memory of that time was not one of her fondest. “I’m not used to this at all.”

“Yeah, yeah, I can see that.” He appeared at her side like a short valiant knight. “So, for your safety, I’d like to have you stay a while longer… So that you can sober up… And maybe you can see that I’m not some lowlife criminal, because I’m not.”

She held her tongue. The direction of her decision was still wavering. Desperate enough, Xigmund looked at her with a flustered desperation.

“Okay, fine, sorry about the sex jokes. I’m trying to be serious about you here, because you’re a serious business woman and like… Hot, and stuff.”

What an idiot. Her arm slipped back into his. Hope was reignited inside of his puppy heart, and he immediately started walking. His stride was steadier than hers, despite their equal portion of vodka. Pentu stumbled once more as she had to keep up.

“So, Xigmund.” She finally spoke. “I’d like to sit down somewhere while I sober up. Got any ideas?”

“Uh…”

A wild cheer of adult voices was heard. Xigmund’s dull, dumb eyes sparked with inspiration.

“WooooooOOooo! Kid’s league baseball!” Xigmund shouted, as they had both taken a seat on the bleachers.

Pentu stared in tipsy disbelief at what she was seeing. The field was littered with a handful of excited yet scrawny kids, participating in one of the most boring sports she knew. Despite this, the bleachers were positively teeming with excited adults cheering for the young ones.

“Do you seriously watch this?” she asked, hoping he would say no.

“Yeah, it’s super lame!” he laughed like the devil he hailed from. “But the atmosphere on these games is absolutely unique, you’ll see! There will be a surprise at the end.”

Pentu squinted at him. “A surprise?”

“Yeah, yeah, don’t worry about it. Just sit down and chill out if you don’t like the sport.”

Pentu took her phone out of her bag, deciding to spend her sobering hour ignoring her circumstances. Xigmund didn’t pay her much mind, instead greeting and shouting at people he knew among the crowd. After a while he stood up.

“Just asking, would you like some more to drink?”

“Sure.” Pentu replied, scrolling down her social media feed. 

Xigmund smiled and shot off across the bleachers. “Awesome, because Osmond’s here! I’ll go get us some of his baseball water!”

The moment Pentu processed his statement she was interrupted. Her phone beamed a picture into her retina, and like lighting it made her heart stop.

Her ex boyfriend was smiling, straight into the camera. The unreal eye contact made it all worse. By his side was a woman, another coworker from DABU, and she was proudly kissing his cheek. The loving, slightly embarrassed yet suave smile which Pentu knew so well was the same. Just the same as he had given her camera for two years. Nothing had changed, but the subject of his affection.

“Whew, sorry to keep you waiting.” Xigmund sat back down, putting a disposable cup into Pentu’s frozen hand. When she did not motion to drink from it he leant closer to see what was distracting her. “Yo, you okay? Who’s the prep with the arm-candy?”

A shuddering breath left Pentu. Is that how people had seen her? She had already superimposed herself into the image, because just one year ago, or rather a couple of months ago, she could have been by his side in the exact same pose.

“That’s my ex.”

“Oh. Oh damn.” Xigmund seemed to realise enough of what was wrong. He gently urged her to put the phone down. “Here, don’t worry about it, just drink a little.”

What hit her tongue was not water. It was more alcohol. She choked and emptied her mouth by simply opening it and letting it run out. All of her life was in shambles. The pitiful waterfall gushing down and staining her blouse was a picture of her soul. Xigmund stared at her wet chin with an intense worry, mingled with horny interest.

“Pentu…?”

“Why are you giving me more alcohol?!” she snapped at him. Her volume was still low, thankfully. “I thought we were here for me to sober up!”

“What? Yes before, but I asked if you wanted some more to drink, and you said yes.” 

“I thought you meant water!” Her dark eyes flashed anger.

“Sssshjjj-shhhjjj, calm down babe.” Xigmund put an arm around her shoulder. “You’re allowed to drink. I see where you’re at! Your tool of an ex-boyfriend is macking on some new girl. You’re not, uh, and yeah you don’t have to but…” He harked awkwardly over his own availability, but flashed it away with a killer grin: “Don’t you deserve to have a good time? Just have something to drink and be a bit different than your day to day life, right?”

The scar in her heart was bleeding once more. A rampage of disastrous thoughts were crashing down on her, lamenting how bad things were now compared to what they had been. The connection of alcohol only made things worse. A desperate hope convinced her that she was older and wiser now. Pentu took another gulp of the strange brew, and the alcohol hurt as much as it disinfected the wound, metaphorically.

Her date laughed. “See? It’s not that hard. Oh, now watch it, this round is the final score!”

The children playing baseball gave it their all. Pentu drank everything Xigmund had served her. Despite all odds, the losing team made one final home run. The bleachers roared in a thunderous applause.

It was about now that Pentu noticed that nearly everyone on the bleachers were drunk out of public decency. She could hardly hear the rusty speaker system announce the winner over the loud atmosphere. All the kids cleared the field very quickly considering their league. Xigmund was bouncing his legs, and looking all the more excited that the game ended.

“Are you ready for the main event?”

“What main event?” Pentu slurred.

“The fighting! Everyone around here are hooligans. They are banned from real matches, so they tend to fight here instead. As long as there’s baseball they’re ready to get down!”

Right as he said that the first punch was thrown. A burly woman fell over, looking up at her assailant with a joyous fire lit in her eyes. All the kids had gone, and the violent adults took to the field like a swarm of hungry locusts.

Pentu took a deep breath. She imagined herself tasting countryside air, tainted by a lousy campfire lit with white spirit. The memory fit, like her fingers clasping around the cup in her hand.

“WOOO! Get him by the nose, Berry!” Xigmund screamed at somebody he knew.

The black blood in the Tiefling’s heart steeled. “Xigmund.”

Her tone of voice made him tense up as if he had been caught misbehaving by a teacher. He took a quick look at her serious face.

“So, uh… Do you like this?”

“No, I hate it.”

“The fighting?”

“This entire date, to be honest.”

“Oh…” Xigmund pouted. “Well, sucks to be you. This is who I am.”

“I’ve realised.” Pentu let a small burp escape into her palm. “But all things considered, I don’t think you’re my worst option.”

Hope sparked. Xigmund turned to his date, curious with malicious intent.

“Hah, what? Do you mean that phony ex of yours was  _ that _ bad?”

“Yes, he didn’t want to marry me.”

“Say what now?”

“Xigmund, would you be willing to marry me?”

The cacophonous roar of the hooligans hurting each other was overbearing. Xigmund found himself pinned to his seat by Pentu’s dark scleras with their yellow pupils. A shiver ran down his spine, and sweat beaded at his temples.

“Like…” hesitation allowed him to smile. “Hypothetically speaking? Or are you seriously proposing to me right now?”

“For the moment, hypothetically.”

A small man took a big breath and blew his cheeks out as he exhaled.

“Yes? Sure? Why though?”

Even in her drunken float, Pentu halted to think. She never told anyone about why she did this. At the cusp of this moment of silence, she decided otherwise. Pentu stood up, hands on her hips, looking out at the ocean of violence ahead.

“I made a foolish bet in my youth, and I’m sticking to it. I have to marry someone before my twenty fifth birthday to win.”

“And if you lose?” Xigmund found himself holding his breath.

“No.” Pentu turned to him with a smile, swaying drunk but happy. “Let’s get out of here. I want to go home.”

Xigmund’s heart was beating frantically. He held her hand as they ran down. To exit the bleachers they had to go down, right where the fighting was picking up.

“Slipping out here can be pretty hard, but don’t worry, I’m an expert!” Xigmund bragged.

Just as he said he could dodge swings, and pull Pentu like a threaded needle past the first line of violence. There was reason to be impressed by his form, but Pentu felt way too focused on keeping herself out of harm’s way.

“See?”

He did not see the next punch coming, and was struck in the face by an elbow pulling back to hit someone else. The strike knocked him back, into Pentu’s unsteady arms. The nearest hooligan who got thrown out of his own scuffle saw them.

Then everything happened fast. Xigmund came to, shouted and tried to duck. Him ducking let Pentu’s well trained kick fly up and deflect the oncoming punch. A nasty crack was heard by the hooligan’s elbow.

“Holy sh-”

“GO!” Pentu screamed.

She took the lead, and pulled Xigmund forward. Instead of dodging Pentu consciously deflected threatening stray limbs by striking them. If Xigmund had been a needle she was the knife. For a moment there was a clear cut in the crowd where they had gone. Everyone who had been hurt by Pentu soon forgot it, mixing that harm in with the rest of their violent night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was the hardest to write so far. It was highly requested, because the in-game "romance" with Xigmund in the campaign is top tier comedy. However, it was not part of my original vision for this fanfiction, so I felt like I forced it a little. I feel like it's not funny enough. I don't know if it adds anything.
> 
> But now it's over and I can get back on track with what really matters; Office romance!  
> (Extra cheers to Gaim and Pentu hugging again last session. The canon fuels the fanon.)


	9. Double Pistols and a Wink

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Xigmund and Pentu finish their date. On Monday he flirts. Gaim decides to start shit. Andi explodes before flying out the window. Bifrost tries to salvage the aftermath. Pentu and Gaim argue, alone... Tindré gets a call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm embarrassed to admit but I finally found out the "rich text" option when pasting this fic over from my documents. It will be easier to read now! I went back and re-pasted the previous chapters, and I feel deeply thankful for any reader before this shift who got through those walls of text.

“And you’re certain they won’t press charges?”

Pentu sucked the ice cream off of the plastic spoon to quell her anxiety.

“Yeah, I told you. They won’t even remember it was you.”

“It’s just… I’m scared that I actually hurt someone.”

“Pfffsh, yeah! That’s awesome. You’ve got some real good moves there, I tell you.” Xigmund laughed.

Back at the train station the two of them were enjoying the bounty of a convenience store before parting ways. Pentu had satisfied her craving for dark chocolate ice cream. It tasted even better when she was drunk and worried. Xigmund was having a feast of sweet junk, buying anything he set his hungry eyes upon. With this haul between them they sat on opposite sides of a bench.

Xigmund cast an eye towards Pentu.

“But hey, regarding this whole marriage bet.”

Pentu swallowed. “I already regret telling you.”

“Nah, babe, like why? Now I at least get why it’s so urgent. But like… Are you game? Do you want to win?”

“I do.” Pentu’s gut feeling was acting up, but the core of her person knew that answer to be true. This was a bet she could not afford to lose. “However… I don’t know if you’re the best option.”

“But I am ONE option, right?”

“Yes. Would it be terribly rude if I kept in contact with you as an emergency husband?”

“Uh…” Xigmund thought. He thought hard. Breadstick in hand he computed his very best. “I don’t know about rude, but you want to keep in touch? Sweet, I’m down. Like, I’ve loved this date, all things considered, and you’re super cool with those ninja kicks back there.”

The cringe was bearable. Pentu was still tipsy, but thought herself to be clear headed enough to see the potential in Xigmund. She imagined herself able to style him into a husband with covert manipulation… Hopefully. Whatever would come of it she needed to eat this ice cream right now, and that was all that mattered.

Xigmund waved at her train as it rolled away. His bright red skin reminded her of cherries in the dusky light. Her stomach ached in the memory of eating too many cherries, and then laying sick for a whole day of summer vacation. She shook off that thought, but didn’t lose the feeling of dread.

The next day Pentu went soul searching within herself. In the middle of her living room floor she meditated, allowing thoughts to come and go.

She didn’t want to get married. That was all a fault of the bet. If only her life was more normal she would probably be enjoying time with her ex to this day.

But did that have any point? She was always open about saving sex until marriage. The thought of living with that man without any children was… Boring. She didn’t want to prolong this time of young adulthood indefinitely.

A very young adult problem was that money was tight. It would be nice to be able to share the rent with someone. Pentu hated meditating over money, so she stirred from her session.

On the internet she searched around for contacts to marry fast. All she got was husbands-for-hire and escort ads, among other less reputable shady businesses. She didn’t have time or patience to go that route. She wanted to find someone, propose, and get it done the traditional way. Her biggest question was how.

Back to meditating, Pentu considered Xigmund… Xigmund… Well, on the bright side he wasn’t rude about his sexual urges. If she were to marry him… She was stronger than him and therefore ought to be able to wrestle herself out of any situation she didn’t agree to. He might be slippery as a weasel, but if she only got a hold of him... What? Was that a thought to have when considering someone for marriage? Pentu blushed in her lotus pose.

The core of this issue, she found after several loops of meditation, was that she was shy. No matter who it was, she would need to live with a man she hardly knew. Whoever she married would be thrown into her daily routine with little to no warning. The marital duties that came after that were… Worse. Even Pentu didn’t know what she liked, or how she was in bed. Shyness was the most common word she had to describe this problem.

She spent some time forgiving herself for that.

Then she spent some time proving that she wasn’t shy at all, by donning her makeup and bravery once again to go on yet another date.

On Monday when Pentu came to work, Xigmund was idling outside of the ramen shop. The moment they got eye contact, Pentu much later than Xigmund, she was rewarded with a one eyed wink and two finger guns. His laserbeam of flirtation hit her. A shocked response of a shy wave was returned. Taking his victory in stride, Xigmund twirled back inside his ramen shop.

The Found Dragon Real Estate shop door chimed as Pentu entered. The small bell above the door swung, in contrast to the scene inside. Both Bifrost and Gaim were downstairs, right by the generous shopwindow, rearranging the housing ads. Their work was abandoned in their shared awe at Pentu entering. Caught in the spotlight of their adoration she was forced to freeze as well.

“Ah…” Gaim uttered first. His mouth agape closed, and curled upwards to a smile.The wrinkles under his eyes were emphasised in the mischievous grin. The idea seemed to dawn upon him like a holy, wholly unexpected, bird.“... I’m gonna start shit.”

“No, please, it’s a Monday!” Bifrost pleaded. “And besides, we could be misinterpreting-”

“What’s going on?” Pentu cut off.

“I’m gonna start shit.” Gaim repeated. He shuffled towards the stairs, leaving the ad-work to Bifrost. “It’s been  _ loooooong _ since something like this popped up.”

“But Gaim, she’s going to be furious.”

“Who’s going to be furious?!” Pentu spoke again, irritation and alarm rising.

“It’s-”

“Ap!” Gaim cut Bifrost off, pointing a yellow finger at the centaur. “Don’t tell her, this is too good to spoil. I’ll cut you a deal and wait until after lunch, alright?”

Bifrost’s handsome face expressed hurt, hope and anguish like a perfect method actor. Pentu read it all, but still could not find any answer. All that she knew by glaring at Gaim was that she wasn’t allowed to know. He chuckled at her dirty look and disappeared up the stairs. Pentu sighed and joined Bifrost by the window ads.

“So after lunch, huh?”

“You’re just going to accept that?” Bifrost whispered, aghast in shock.

“It’s Monday.” Pentu argued, trying hard to seem aloof. “Besides, what’s the worst that could happen?”

Bifrost frowned deeply, hands back at work. “Don’t jinx it.”

It had to have something to do with Andi, Pentu just knew it. From the start of the day she had pieced together ‘she’s going to be furious’ with the only other female employee. As if the way Bifrost was already walking on eggshells around her wasn’t obvious enough. She was however impressed by how well those big hooves of his could tip toe about the situation. Each and every time Pentu stole a glance towards Andi she was caught. Andi seemed to realise something was up, without a doubt.

Pentu glared at Gaim across their divider. He was the least perturbed by the oncoming storm, presumably because he was the one about to start it. Unlike Andi, he did not catch Pentu looking his way. He sipped his coffee and tapped away at his work, without a care in the world. It irritated Pentu to no end.

Wilford was out of the office in the afternoon, leaving the younger employees to stew in privacy about this drama. Sometime around two Gaim got up. Both Bifrost and Pentu stopped what they were doing, looking towards Gaim as if he was the conductor of their orchestra. The gith sauntered over towards the water cooler.

“Hey Andi, I saw something funny this morning.”

“Oh yeah?” Andi replied, her back facing him at her station. The blue light from her computer reflected in her reading glasses.

“Xigmund.” said Gaim. “He did something funny.”

Andi’s shoulders tensed up, sending a ripple throughout her wings. She did not reply for a short while. Gaim had time to fill his cup with water, swirl it around in the coffee stains and taste it. Somehow the dirty brew made his shit eating grin wider. He didn’t say anything. He knew she would cave in first.

“So what did he do?” Andi asked. She harked her throat, adding with clear malice: “Fall on his face and eat dirt? That would be pretty funny.”

“Nope. He did, you know-”

The tone of his voice made Andi swivel around on her chair to face him.

“One of these.”

Gaim replicated the awful flirtation, shooting double guns and blinking both of his eyes. Somewhere at the back of her mind Pentu wondered if this was an ableist mockery of the luscus-legally blind-folks with one eye, and also pondered that this disability had no clear name. However, the front of her mind was all caught up in the rising storm concerto.

Andi shuddered. A false smile strained to keep her together, stretched across her face. Inside of it her teeth grit sharply.

“To whom, may I ask?”

Gaim leaned on the cabinets, chuckling. “Please, ask away. But why don’t you ask Pentu?”

Andi swivelled, sharp again on her swivel chair. “Who was it?”

Pentu tried speaking, but was caught up in a cough. Half finished she got out, pathetically: “That would have been me.”

“He flirted? With you?”

“Yes.” For the second time Pentu had to restrain herself from adding on ‘your honor’ in this courtroom questioning.

Andi stood up, tail swishing in apparent anger.

“Now why on earth would he do that? He knows you’re my coworker, so why would-” her speech trailed off to nothingness as she feverishly tried to think.

“I kind of went on a date with him.” Pentu admitted. “Last Friday.”

Andi snapped shut. The tension in the room was tighter than a bass-string, and just as deep. Gaim in the background made a surprised, entertained silent “oh” with his mouth.

Pentu felt compelled to keep talking:   
“Well, he asked me out, and I figured I’d give him a shot.” It was simple, true, honest. Between her own gritted teeth Pentu added: “I’m single, after all.”

“Yes!” Andi sparked, taking a step forward. She stopped. “You are.”

Disgust written over her entire figure, Andi kept stumbling forwards until she reached Pentu’s desk. A small blue hand hovered, hesitant, before settling down on Pentu’s tense shoulder.

“But you’re worth so much better than him.” Andi stomached, looking and sounding ready to puke. “I’m telling you this as a coworker, as a friend… But that man is trash.”

Bifrost had been watching the scene, like a soldier on lookout in his trench at the opposite side of the office. His desperation, anguish and altruism finally broke his stressed silence. He straightened his back, shouting across the room to clarify:

“You see Pentu, Xigmund and Andi were an item once, and it didn’t end very well.”

“DIDN’T  _ END _ VERY WELL MY ASS” Andi shouted, throwing out her supportive hand to instead point with a fury on Bifrost. “THE WHOLE THING WAS A GODDAMN NIGHTMARE!”

“I know!” whined the centaur, ducking down again. “I know your story. I was going to tell her to stay off, for her own good-”   
“AND YOU DIDN’T?”

“Gaim said-”

“YEAH, GAIM?” Andi strode up towards the gith. She huffed, managing to lower her volume just a bit. “You saw it all this morning, but you didn’t tell me until now? Or tell her anything at all?”

The accountant didn’t reply, busy taking a long, long sip of water. Andi was left fuming, furious, fast to any kind of action and-

“AAAAAARGH!” Andi attacked the water cooler with a mighty push. For those of you who have never tried, water coolers are actually supremely heavy. Therefore it ought to be all the more impressive that the small real estate agent actually toppled it.

“Hah! Called it!” Gaim cheered, dancing away from the chaos with his cup in hand. “I knew she could do it.”

“Oh no, no, no, no!” Bifrost moaned, watching the water start spilling out on the carpet.

Andi rushed to the windows, threw them open and flew out, just like the first day of Pentu’s job. Pentu herself was quick and busy on her feet, helping Bifrost right the water cooler again. Together they managed, but they both strained while in awe at Andi’s angry strength.

“I told you I’d start shit.” said Gaim, sitting back down at his desk.

Pentu turned to him in a fury. Bifrost gave up, arms flailing in defeat.

“I’m done, you guys. I’ll trot out and find Andi, or guard the noodle shop, whichever is needed more.” called the centaur while gingerly hurrying down the stairs (an urban feat in itself for his stature).

The cold awkward puddle on the carpet was seeping in and settling in the room. Pentu’s initial fury had its edge taken off. She was alone with Gaim, with no witnesses to this fight. No witnesses but her own self conscience and his inevitable judgement.

“Why?” was her foremost question.

“Simple, damage control.” Gaim leaned back in his chair, fetching a bottle from a drawer. He spoke as he gladly filled his cup with booze. “There’s not a single thing in this unholy earth that makes Andi as angry and upset as Xigmund. Now, I didn’t know you actually had a date with the idiot already, but I just wanted to nip any potential romance in the bud. That’s why.”

Pentu stepped in the wet spot, the heels of her shoes soaking up the water.

“Are you hearing yourself? You sound completely mental.” she said, with no emotion at all in her voice.

“Mental? Sorry, can’t hear that part, but to each their own.” Gaim dismissed before taking his first sip. The strong spirit buzzed on his tongue.

“No, you’re insane. I’ve never heard of any worker at any company purposefully revealing budding relations to the… The exes of those involved!” Pentu slammed her hands on her desk, leaning close over the divider. “Are you actually this malicious?”

“Oh please.” Gaim slammed his feet on his desk, pushing his chair out. “Didn’t you hear me? It was damage control. You’ll thank me later.”

Over their shared workspace, there was a clear divide of attack and defense. The tiefling standing, leaning forwards, towards the gith sitting, leaning backwards. Their opposite expressions aided the tension of turmoil in the air.

“Make later now Gaim.” Pentu demanded. “I want to know what goes on in that drunken mind of yours.”

“Drunken? I just took a sip.”

“I saw you spike your coffee earlier, don’t play dumb with me.”

He squinted at her with perfect eye contact. Demonstratively he took yet another sip.

“So were you going to tell me?” Pentu snapped.

“Ugh, fine!” An eye roll was rolled. “You’re new here, and you didn’t know how much Andi hated Xigmund or their history together. Both me and Bifrost saw you two flirting, and trust me that spells trouble. If Andi found out that you were like, seriously dating, that could compromise the  _ entire _ damn balance of peace in this company.”

“But we weren’t  _ seriously _ dating!”

“Yet!” He argued, pointing with his cup. “I don’t know what’s going on between you and the noodle chef, but it’s got to stop.”

“You don’t know the first thing about me.” Pentu replied, a bit too fast and a bit too aggressive. To cover it up she just put more fuel on the fire, going off in the same tone. “Whoever I date and why I do it has nothing to do with you. It’s creepy how casual you can be about being this overtly controlling.”

This struck Gaim, and left him speechless for a few seconds. “Now wait here… Just stop, and slow down for a damn minute.”

Pentu stopped speaking, but didn’t shift in her aggressive stance. Her bright pupils on their dark scleras kept staring straight at him, unrelenting.

“You saw how angry Andi got, yeah?” Gaim explained, obviously nervous. “That was… That was  _ how mad _ she became because we kept it from her for like… Five hours. She toppled the fucking water cooler! And she’s short as all hell! She shouldn’t be able to do that. She did, and I’m impressed, but that’s beside the point…”

He took a breath and sighed. “Can you please imagine how mad she would have been if Xigmund suddenly became your boyfriend?”

Pentu did imagine it. She imagined it in her own reality, realising that Xigmund would suddenly have become her husband. Knowing herself, she would double down on that choice and refuse any kind of divorce, no matter what Andi said and… It would be bad. Pentu stood up straight, looking down in bitter acceptance.

“Fine. I see your point. It would destroy my place in this company. I’m sorry for lashing out.”

Gaim shrugged, breathing out a sigh of relief.

“There’s no need to say sorry, I’m… I didn’t think of my implications, really.”

“Did you think about just telling me?” Pentu asked, still a little sharp in her tongue.

“Yeah, Bifrost wanted to.” Gaim nodded and took a true gulp. Then he turned to her and said: “I just thought this would be more educational. And fun. For me, of course.”

Pentu had to sit down. Somewhere out in Sigi-Lite-Tokyo’s airspace Andi was flying, and somewhere on the ground Bifrost was looking for her. There was a wet puddle on their company carpet. Gaim did this, and had no shame about being the cause for so much chaos. It hurt her head to imagine the guilt she wanted him to feel.

“You’re hopeless.”

“Hah, not the first time I heard that, believe me.” Clicks were heard on the other side of the divider. “Wilford had hope for me though, so all is not lost.”

“Yes.” Pentu cringed. “The in-house educated accountant.”

“It made me a great accountant.”

“Great... Like Xigmund’s great noodles?”

Gaim leant to the side, peeking his head into Pentu’s field of view. Once again he was squinting at her.

“Do you actually like him?”

“That’s none of your business.” she replied curtly.

“I’m just saying Andi had a point, you’re too good for him. He’s an asshole.”

“Yes! So what if he is?” Pentu threw her hands up. “There are worse men in this world than simple, stupid assholes.”

Gaim face showed a slow process of trying to make sense of Pentu. His cup appeared in view to supply some more fuel to the think machine. He got no results.

“Who are you to talk?” She pointed at him, out of fucks to give. “You’re the one openly drinking at work.”

“Nuh-uh, I’m off the clock. I finished all my work today before even going to the water cooler.”

“What about the coffee?”

“You don’t have any proof.”

Pentu let out a groan into her hands. It was enough for Gaim’s face to disappear. By the time she resurfaced to the real world he was on his way out of the office.

“I would text Andi if I were you.”

“Noted. Thanks.” She brought out her phone. “Thanks for your hard work today, Gaim.”

He mumbled a jumble of a reply, too lazy to be recognized as the proper phrase. His light steps thumped down the stairs, and he was gone. Pentu laid her head down on her desk, sadly composing a business email to Andi with a proper apology. At the end of it she promised to never engage romantically with Xigmund again, heeding Andi’s warning that he was, in fact, a dick. Her weekend of hope to have an emergency husband was over. The crash after her defeatist honeymoon felt hard. Almost as if she was heartbroken. All because of Gaim…

In the street Gaim had his phone to his ear. The signal went through, silken smooth thanks to the enchanted phoneline he searched.

“Nine Hells Lawyers Incorporated, you’re speaking to Tindré, how can I help you?”

“Hey, it’s me.”

“Oh…?” He could practically hear her cheshire cat grin curl wider. “You never call my work phone, Gaim.”

“Yeah, I just figured you’d still be working, and I know damn well you don’t answer your cell when you’re on the clock.”

She giggled, and he held his phone further away from his ear in disgust. Grumpy he brought it back, looking at the ground as he admitted:

“It’s just that I hoped to go out drinking soon. Do you have any cases to celebrate?”

“Only the case of a stubborn gith taking the initiative for once. Of course I’ll go drink with you, no occasion on my part needed.”

“I hate you.” he sighed, rubbing his forehead. “But when are you free?”


	10. A Ruined Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The real estate agents do their job. Andi and Pentu forgive each other. Surprise butts. Pentu get's a call from her father. Gaim gets a headache. There's sadness, before collision. Krev is in town.

It was a modern palace. Pentu looked up, craned her neck until it hurt, and took a deep breath. The clicks of the hired photographer’s camera echoed in the huge space. Someone would live here, because their agency would sell it.

Wilford pat her back, and she stirred from her awe.

“Ever sold one of these before?”

“No… I imagine they are quite few and far inbetween.” 

“Definitely. But the essence is the same.”

A lesser row of bickering arose from the active team, over in the next room. The photographer had three pairs of eyes working today, despite being an elf. The landlord had earnest and passionate opinions on how their crown jewel ought to be advertised, while Bifrost had to act as the professional middle man with the more extensive know-how of how Found Dragon Real Estate envisioned selling the apartment. Too many cooks spoil the broth, so Pentu, Wilford and Andi were left to roam the place on their own.

It was gargantuan, luxurious, perfect in every idea of a home for a dragon. It was furbished in marble and mineral rock, quite bare, like a blank slate for someone to paint their own ideals upon. For the photos it had been stylized with a minimalistic flair.

Pentu felt dwarfed in the space around her. It was hard to believe that this was in the middle of the city, with ample connections and public transport on hand. Beyond just the big areas the apartment included lesser “guest rooms” which would with no doubt be intended for retainers and servants, or more of a hoard. Still, Wilford had urged them, they had to remember there was no guarantee a dragon would become the final buyer. The dragonproofing itself was just another mark of luxury, and a luxury many dreamed off at that.

Andi walked down the wide staircase, running her hand over the marble railing. Pentu waited for her at the bottom, checking over her shoulder that Wilford had properly drifted off.

“Did you recieve my email?” she asked in a hushed voice.

“Yes.” Andi was obviously embarrassed. Before now they had spoken of nothing but business all day, but there was a desperate need to address the elephant in the room. “I just haven’t found the… Language to reply.”

“How come?”

“I really didn’t expect you to write it like a work-email.”

Pentu giggled. Andi managed to smile. With the promise from Pentu’s side to let the Xigmund romance lie and let die, there was not much that needed to be said. The two women instead looked out over the living room.

“These are some fine arched ceilings.” Pentu remarked.

“Yes. It has a tall roof overall, the arches just make it look taller.” Andi gave her wings a stretch. “It’s beautiful.”

“Does it make you jealous?”

“No, not at all!” Andi blushed, hiding her mouth, eyes wide open. “The thought of living here scares me. It would feel so lonely.”

“True, without a posse of servants, or a family of ten, I would never even enjoy all this space. It’s so out of my price range and lifestyle that I’d go mad.”

In solid agreement they shared another bout of merriment. An echo of a raspy voice made them turn their heads. Pentu’s heart leapt at the intrusive noise of shoes dragging against the floor. She knew he would make an appearance, yet she still felt surprised.

Wilford, who had met him at the door, was escorting Gaim around the place. 

As an accountant he didn’t have much to do with the actual apartment, and at first Gaim had assumed a house tour was unnecessary. However, during their “battle meeting” Wilford insisted that Gaim needed to case the place. He expected many prospective buyers calling in to ask minute questions, and wanted Gaim to support everyone on the phone team. A lot of that could be pulled out of the pamphlet, or reading the nitty gritty fine print descriptions and qualifications, but not all. There’s an infinite array of questions which can only be answered if one has experienced the apartment for themselves. These questions might range from valid to stupid, but that was part of their job. With Gaim on the team the five of them ought to manage.

Pentu stared at Gaim as he shuffled past, trailing Wilford with dutiful attention. Wilford was touring him through the lens of the realtor, and now stopped by the fireplace to point at something inside of the chimney. There was a public sigh of defiance as Gaim knelt to see what that fuss was about.

There was a pinch at Pentu’s side. Andi was smirking, but not saying anything.

“Are you mad at him?” Pentu asked instead.

“At Gaim? No.” Andi shrugged. “He played me, but I can see the cause behind it. He might have been a prick about it, but he truly was trying to keep the peace in the long run.”

“I see…” Pentu said, agreeing with a drop of bitterness.

“I won’t forget it though.”

Andi was touching her teeth with her thumb finger, as if she would bite it, yet she never did. Pentu offered her a quizzical posture.

“What, do you think I’ll just let it slide? He owes me one.” Andi clarified silently. “He might not have a big ‘get upset button’ like I apparently do, but me and Bifrost both feel cheated out of that scene yesterday.”

“So you will…?”

“We’ll embarrass him someday, just you wait.”

Gaim was instructed to lean over the railings of the balcony. Pentu found it curious to see both the gith and his human mentor in that contortion. Both of their roomy pants had reason to strain against their wearers. The sight didn’t bother Pentu as much as it informed her that yes, both Gaim and Wilford had something called an ass. Bifrost had his butt on display all the time, technically, now that she considered it.

In the other room the landlord gave out a gleeful shout, overjoyed by some magic trick the elf photographer managed to pull with their camera.

The week in the office consisted of prep-crunch. While the agents still had a couple of clients left to finish up, and new clients called them up, the schedule was being cleared. The moment they launched the sale for the Dragon’s Den they would be swamped with work regarding that and only that. It would be a special month ahead, and they all knew it. New clients were deftly scheduled as late as possible, with no particular reason given.

It was on Thursday that Pentu got a call after lunch. Stirring from her copy-work on the brochure, she found her father’s ID on the screen. 

“Sorry, this might be urgent.” Pentu announced as she stirred from her seat.

Everyone at Found Dragon quirked an eyebrow. Bifrost replied something along the lines of ‘don’t worry about it’ but Pentu had already hurried to the break room.

“Hello?”

“Ah, hello Pentu. Uhm, forgive me, my head’s still a mess and I’m in the process of calling everybody, so I figured I might as well call you as well.” His suave voice was trembling, and there was a scratch by his receiver. “I’ve kind of realised I never do. But that’s beside the point, isn’t it?”

“Dad, are you okay?”

“No, really I’m not. I’m afraid I’ll have to seek out a therapist, and I already feel guilty for considering it, since I’m all up and considering how Wodin ought to be feeling, when this is all over, because he’s going to be fine, it’s just going to cost us-”

“Dad, what’s going on?” Pentu interrupted. The stress of her father had rubbed off on her already. Her pulse was rushing. “You’re calling me in the middle of work, and I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

There was a silence as her dad struggled to comprehend that he had been lied to.

“But Krev said he would call you.”

The rampant heart of Pentu tripped, and skipped two beats in dread. She gripped a chair and slowly sat down by the break table.

“He didn’t. Could you take it from the start please.”

It was a sad tale, not yet finished. At a construction site of their family company, there had been an accident with a crane. The load had not been properly secured, and a rain of pipes had fallen. Wodin, a cyclops workman who had been with the company long enough that Pentu considered him an uncle, had been hit. A thin pipe had pierced him, from the shoulder and through his torso until it exited his thigh. Pentu’s father described it in horrified detail, as he had seen everything happening.

A helicopter had immediately flown out to the site, and carried Wodin towards Sigi-Lite-Tokyo. The hospital here was simply more capable of treating such a serious injury. In the midst of it all it had dawned upon the company that this would be covered by insurance. Krev, Pentu’s cousin, had immediately volunteered to take the very next train to the capital to arrange the medical bills for Wodin.

“- so he rushed away with barely two minutes notice. I ran after him a few paces to ask where he would sleep, and he just said he’d stay at your place.” He swallowed, calmer at the end of his story than at the start of it. “Krev said he would call you as soon as he boarded the train.”

Pentu was reclining, staring out the window. She let out a sigh.

“Well, as I said, he didn’t.”

“That’s bad, isn’t it… Oh, I ought to call him and scold him, he had plenty of time on that train ride, yet-”

“No, please. Just relax.” Pentu closed her eyes, forehead wrinkled over her furrowed brow. Her mouth however smiled, to make her voice sound happy as she added: “It really doesn’t matter. He will sleep at my place. I live here alone after all, and you’re all welcome to stay, should you visit Sigil.”

Then she held her breath. She kept any noise inside, and tilted the phone away. Her free hand reached to grip at both of her temples, pressing to distract herself with pain. The lump in her throat was softened by her efforts. Her father too was silent for a while.

“Should I have called more?” he timidly pried. “Valerie assured me she was keeping in good touch with you ever since the break up, but-”

“No, I’m fine.” Pentu laughed, faker than ever with the warped face of a clown. Only through audio did it seem genuine. “I’ve been busy either way. My new job is great, and everyone here is really friendly. We go out eating and drinking together, and it’s loads of fun.”

Petty, pretty lies. The karaoke night was the only time she had done that. But her dad didn’t need to know about the intense dating and her darkening despair. She was still crossing days off her calendar.

“That’s good… Well, I won’t keep you from your work any longer. I’m happy we got to have a chat, and now you don’t need to be surprised when Krev turns up at your doorstep.”

“Thank you for your call, dad. Let’s pray for Wodin’s recovery.”

“Yes. Thank you. Bye!”

The moment Pentu entered the office again, all eyes were on her. She had taken time to compose herself, and practiced silently to make her reentry.

“Sorry. There had been an accident at my father’s company. He needed to talk, that’s all.”

“Are you okay?” Bifrost asked. His hooves fidgeted on the carpet. “You know, if you have to take a call you have to take a call. There’s no need to apologise.”

Wilford grunted his approval. That warmth that Pentu enjoyed in this crowd came to rest in her stomach.

“Thank you… Well, let’s not dally, I’m ready to get back to work.”

Everyone noticed, but nobody noticed as clearly as Gaim. He himself had been high-strung since Monday, still not over his regrets about the fight. There was no feasible way for him to avoid Pentu when they shared an office and by extension one desk. The only solace he had was waiting for the day when him and Tindré would go out drinking. Today he was scheduled to vent his frustrations, drink them to bits, and forget them all.

But that catharsis had not arrived yet. Therefore, Gaim felt hyper aware of how sad Pentu seemed. Above the divider he saw, clear as day, how her eyebrows were slanted in evident emotion and despair. Well, to be fair it was a minute difference, but for a man with a heavy conscience it meant the world.

It wasn’t his fault, was it? - Gaim’s troubled mind managed to think as he stood by the printer. The machine churned out warm papers to soothe his guilt. No, no way, it had to be whatever that phone call was about.

“Ahem… Stapler.” He called as he sat down again.

Pentu grabbed the tool and handed it over the divider without looking away from her screen. “Uhh…” continued his raspy voice. “You alright there?”

Finally she stirred. The moment she looked up her sorrowful eyebrows went back to normal. “What? Why wouldn’t I be?”

“You seem a little down, is’ all.” Gaim handed back the stapler. “Was that accident something serious?”

“Yes, it was.” she replied. “An old family friend, employed at the site, had to be flown off with a helicopter. I’d guess it’s bothering me a bit.”

Gaim nodded, and mumbled some condolences. Beneath his exterior of politeness there was something else: He didn’t believe Pentu. The sadness she showed while talking about the accident was not the same that she displayed in silence. It kept bothering him throughout the day.

As an awkward fate would have it, people dropped off at irregular times. Andi had to go early. Wilford would finish the day meeting with the Dragon’s Den landlord. Bifrost left at the normal hour. The clock struck four, and the minutes rushed further. Gaim and Pentu were the last ones left at the office.

Gaim’s stomach churned. He was supposed to meet Tindré at five. In his brilliant plan he had expected everyone to leave at the regular hour, giving him ample time to pre-booze himself in solitude at the office. Instead he sat with Pentu, the reason for his superfluous thirst, and couldn’t take a single sip. She’d get on his case again, he just knew it.

Adapting to this hardship Gaim pocketed a bottle and hid in the toilet. The break room was dangerous, as she could walk in there and catch him. It seemed like a poor pastiche of his teenage years, to be sitting on a toilet lid and drinking himself towards oblivion. At least Pentu was sure to leave before he had to get out.

She hadn’t. Gaim entered the office, only to find Pentu exactly where he last saw her. She had that same sorrowful bend to her brow. From this angle, unlike his desk, he could see she still had work up on her screen.

“You still at it?” he asked, masking a burp behind his fist.

“I have some more to get done.”

“Oh yeah?” Gaim was uncomfortable, and felt as if he swayed way too much as he walked on over to his desk. “Well, you’re getting on overtime now. Can’t it wait until tomorrow?”

“I’d rather not. I want to stay.”

He was ready to escape, abscond and get the hell out of here. His hand was already closed around the grip of his bag. Still he didn’t. It churned at the bottom of his stomach, and prickled at his temples. He hated feeling this. He hated feeling that Pentu felt bad. His gith mind-reading was suppressed by the amount of alcohol in his system, but Pentu’s mind seemed to be screaming for help. Gaim didn’t move.

After the silence had turned awkward, Pentu stirred once more. Just like last time she dropped out of her somber mood the moment she focused on external issues. The issue she found was that Gaim was staring at her. As one would expect, the moment their eyes locked he looked away.

“You okay Gaim?”

“Yeah. You?”

“I’m fine.”

“You sure?”

“Yes. Why would I lie to you?”

Gaim inhaled sharply, and at that cue he finally threw his bag over his shoulder. He had to get away, before he embarrassed the both of them any further. He was the one to blame for making things weird.

“Ah, I dunno, you just seem off, still.” Gaim explained as he was walking away. “But hey, good luck with your overtime. If you ever need anyone to cover for you, I think any of us here in the office would be happy to do so.”

He stopped at the top of the stairs.

“That means me too. I’ll cover for you.”

Pentu sat at her desk, hands still resting on her keyboard, stunned at this camraderie. Deep in her stomach she felt something. A hope, vain hope, of something happening despite her swearing it off. She quenched the hot flame by swearing it impossible again.

“Thanks Gaim, I’ll remember that. You’re a responsible co-worker, and that makes me feel safe.”

Gaim’s shoulders twitched. “If that’s what you call it, sure.”

He was gone, once more. Pentu looked at the clock above the door. There was plenty of time for her to waste before going home.

Gaim entered the bar, looking about him in a fury already. Tindré wasn’t there, just his luck. Now he had to sit around and- The door opened behind him, and a familiar devil’s hand was put on his shoulder. Gaim shrugged it off and dodged her presence like a plague, as if he hadn’t just cursed over the fact that she wasn’t around.

“My, oh my” purred Tindré, taking off her sunglasses. “You look just about ready to kill someone.”

Gaim scoffed. “The only thing I’m killing tonight is my thirst. Come on, I’m in a bad mood.”

“I can tell, Gaim, I can tell.”

He took the charge towards their spots for once. When Tindré walked behind him he felt more powerful, more dangerous, and more vulnerable at the same time. Luckily there were no clueless fuckers to scare off from their seats.

After the silence of them ordering their first drinks, Tindré stayed provocatively tight lipped. Gaim groaned before he had to open up the conversation.

“So this thing happened Monday, and I messed up. Somehow I missed my mark by a landslide, and before I knew it she was super pissed at me.”

“And who would  _ she _ be?”

“Pentu, who else?”

Tindre giggled. “Exactly, who else…”

Gaim shuddered at the devil’s implications, but shrugged them off by elbowing Tindré’s arm. The devil let out a bit of laughter once more.

“And then?” she asked. “Something happened today as well, didn’t it?”

“No, shut up, I don’t want to talk about that. I’m here to talk about Monday.”

“Oh that’s too bad, because my curiosity is killing me.” Tindré tilted her head. Her sharp grin was ever present. “Last I checked, we’ve got all night...”

Pentu walked up to her apartment complex. It was half past six. She held tightly onto the bag of groceries which had prolonged her arrival those precious extra minutes. Her mind was calm. For better or for worse, she was ready.

Her steps made noise in the stairs. By her door, Krev stirred from his phone. He saw the back of her head first, an unmistakable recognition alighting his mind. She turned in her ascent, and she saw him too. He stood up to greet her, blush rising to his face.

Krev and Pentu looked alike enough for a stranger to believe they were siblings. The two tieflings had the same ash-gray skin and dark scleras around yellow pupils. Both of their statures were proud and strong. The hair in their family was raven and thick. Their foremost difference was their horns. 

Pentu had four horns around the rim of her entire skull, two in the front and two in the back. Many had likened their sharp short nubs to a crown. She denied such flattery, excusing them for never having seen Krev’s. His horns were five sharp points lining his hairline. The middle and outermost ones were taller than their odd peers, which truly cemented the crenulated appearance of a crown. It outshone her array, in that respect.

Kind older relatives had stuck to their words of praise. To them, it didn’t matter whose horns looked more regal. To them, both cousins were blessed with the illusion of a crown. Krev would be the king, and Pentu would be the queen.

Their reunion was a cold one. Krev expected surprise, but Pentu didn’t raise an eyebrow or even smile. She silently walked up and stuck her key in the lock.

“Hey.” Krev tried.

“Hi. Dad called.” Pentu replied.

This short confirmation made many things dawn upon Krev. He stuck his hands in his pockets, and kicked the ground softly.

“Can I sleep here?”

“Yes.” Pentu opened the door. She held it wide open to let him in. “Though, you have to leave tomorrow.”

“Why?” Krev asked.

“You should go back home.”

There was silence between them. Krev didn’t move.

“Besides…” Pentu forced a smile. “I can’t have you freeloading for too long. One night is just enough.”

Krev smiled too, like a cat that had gotten the cream. He took his bag and entered her home. Pentu followed, and locked the door again to her personal hell.


	11. Reveals and Revelations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is the creepy chapter.
> 
> But Gaim drinks with Tindré. They bicker. He realises something important.
> 
> Then it's the creepy chapter again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really proud of this chapter, and I hope you will enjoy it. Finally some big questions are answered. It's all coming together.

Pentu’s apartment had one of those silly little key-cabinets in the foyer. Various keys were neatly stored in there, hanging from their neat pegs. Pentu usually never bothered, but today she hung her house keys in there, and closed it up. The next part was even more out of the ordinary. She took the decorative key of the cabinet, normally functioning as a handle, and properly locked it. The key to all keys was safely tucked in her pocket.

Krev solemnly took note of this. His big work shoes stood like intruders on guard by the door. He was still dressed for his station, as a foreman on a construction site, and considerably dirty at that. The story checked out that he had gone straight to the capital hospital.

“Do you want to take a bath?” Pentu asked politely.

“A change of clothes to use as pyjamas would be lovely.”

“I’ll see what I can manage.” She put the groceries on the counter. “The bathwater is on a timer, and ought to be hot already if you want to go. I usually bathe around this time of night.”

There was a glimmer in Krev’s eyes. He nodded, and retreated calmly to the bathroom. Pentu felt thankful he had taken the bait. The moment she heard him lock the bath she left the groceries alone, instead going into her bedroom.

She immediately took her calendar, full of crossed out days, off of the wall. That was put in a basket, and soon she had covered it with dirty laundry and slid it under her bed. Further details of bachelorette living were rapidly cleaned up and hidden. That way she ended up at her closet, in search of something for her cousin to wear.

Krev rested in the hot water. His eyes were rolled back, in a near religious stupor. Judging from his knowledge, this tub of water had been used more than three times already. His breath was slow and deep.

“Krev?”

“Yes…” he mumbled in a reply. Her loud voice echoed within these walls, and he didn’t want to disturb it.

“I’ll put your change of clothes here. Do you want me to launder the ones you wore today?”

“Everything but the jacket, please.”

“Got it.”

Krev glanced at the frosted glass door. The shadow of Pentu danced against it, while she busied herself with the washing machine. He sighed silently, face full of pleasure.

When he exited the bath Pentu had busied herself with plenty of things. There were already sheets, pillows and a blanket on the couch. A stew was already simmering on the stove. Half of her pile of dirty dishes was clean, and there were bags of trash in the foyer waiting to be carried further. Krev looked to his cousin by the sink in abject adoration. After a moment’s pause he took a place by her side, to dry the wet dishes.

“Are these yours?” he asked, nodding towards his clothes. It was a big t-shirt with a faded print of palm trees, and a pair of basketball shorts. Both of them seemed too big for Pentu.

“Now they are.” she replied, dismissively. “They are comfy to lounge about in.”

“But you didn’t buy them, right?” The undertone of his voice was mean.

“No. He gave them to me, after I took a liking to them. He didn’t want them back.”

They did the dishes in silence for a while. Krev’s expression had hardened. Pentu refused to speak first, and the pause dragged on. Finally Krev snapped.

“You know, I think it’s right. You were too good for him, and-”

“Stop.” Pentu snapped back. “Code red, just stop.”

The codeword did make Krev freeze. His hands were still, while Pentu’s kept irritably washing up.

“You know, I didn’t let you invite yourself into my home to have you bash my ex-boyfriend.” said Pentu. “We split up on friendly terms. I have no hard feelings towards the man.”

“But he already has a new girlfriend.” Krev countered.

“Why the fuck do you know that?” She didn’t stop washing the dishes, but proudly displayed her anger through it. Krev was taken aback, and shyly dried his current plate.

“I keep tabs on social media.”

“On my ex?”

“We’re still friends on Social Tome.”

The conversation ended. Pentu didn’t have anything to blame Krev for. Krev was waiting for her temper to calm down. Without a word they finished up the dishes.

“Could you give me the cream from the fridge?” Pentu asked, surveying her stew.

While Krev gladly obeyed her request, he took a stop in front of the open fridge. His dark eyes surveyed its contents, and found one grand offender.

“Since when did you drink apple juice?”

Pentu tasted her stew and pronounced it done. “Don’t worry, I’ll show you.”

For their dinner table Pentu prepared just about everything. Krev anxiously observed her every move. She filled a jug of water, which seemed to calm him down. Then she went to the fridge, and procured the apple juice. Ever since the karaoke night she had perfected the trick Gaim had played on her. She ‘spiked’ her water with a quick motion, providing a cute diluted apple flavour to their drink.

Krev liked it. The mood shifted to the better. They spent their meal speaking of the accident, and about the insurance process. It had been a lesser nightmare, bureaucratically speaking. Pentu related her experiences about house insurance. These dry and factual topics made her nearly enjoy her time, if only because of how inoffensive they were.

Krev poured himself another glass, eminent suave smile on his lips.

“Although I have to say Pentu, this apple juice trick is really swell. How did you come up with it?”

“I didn’t really.” Her guard was lifted, knowing what would come next. “A guy at work showed it to me.”

Krev stopped drinking. When he removed the glass from his lips he didn’t seem to enjoy the taste as much.

“Oh?” There was a slight pause. “Who’s he?”

Gaim slammed his glass down on the bar counter.

“- so basically, I’m a scumbag! I can’t tell her to  _ not date _ anyone! How did I not see that I was like, fucking, acting like a jealous boyfriend? Shit’s the worst, and I- I just… How did I not see that coming?”

Tindré twirled her drink with a devilish laughter.

“How indeed… I'd claim my court rules it as reckless stupidity, nothing more, nothing less.”

Gaim groaned, and ordered another drink. His pace had been twice the speed of Tindré's, if not more. She took time to happily nurse her every order. Gaim hardly thought about the taste for more than one painful, swallowing second. The bartender sternly held up the card-reader, and Gaim swiped his pride through it for another deposit. It was declined.

A wakeup shock opened the gith’s sunken eyes. Tindre reached over to swipe her card instead.

“Please, let me take this one.” She gave Gaim’s shoulder a squeeze. “And maybe one or two more later on.”

He hid his face and moped on the bar counter. The hope to drink all of his problems away was buried under more problems to worry about. This sucked. The bartender slid up his next glass. He grabbed it and started nursing the contents at a much slower pace.

“But honestly…” Tindré started. “I think you’re beating yourself up over this social faux pas a bit too much.”

Gaim let out a grunt, which would be equal parts agreement and rejection. Tindré faced the bar and kept on going.

“The normal Gaim I know would shrug this off, say it’s too bad that girl got upset, and then forget about it because he doesn’t care.” She shot a cat eyed glance his way. “But it seems that today’s Gaim  _ does _ care... He even cares enough to drink himself broke, which is such a rookie mistake, by the by.”

“Yeah, yeah, thanks for the drink.” Gaim dismissed, waving his glass between them. “Now don’t go harping on me because I’ve matured some, will you? I care 'bout my social mistakes, especially at work, you know. That shit matters!”

“No, they don’t matter this much.” Sharktooth grin and scorpion stinger went in for the kill on the gith. “What matters is  _ her _ ... I think you like her.”

Gaim was relatively unphased. Everyone who looked their way in the bar felt a shiver run down their spine. The scorpion tail was poised, ready to strike and sting deep into his back. She was leaning over him, like the monster she truly was. Luckily he knew her well enough to dismiss this behaviour. He rubbed his drunken forehead.

“I don’t like her. You don’t know shit.”

“No you do.” Tindré promised. “The moment you say it out loud, you’ll realise that it’s true.”

“Fuck off.” he scowled up at her. “Why do you even care? Shouldn't you be busy fussing over that guy from February?”

At once the bone devil’s threats were retracted. Back in her corner Tindré crossed one leg over the other, looking off and away.

“There is no guy from February. You’re delusional.”

“Bull-fucking-shit.” Gaim fought back. “You’re probably this pissy because you haven’t seen him in a while.”

“You’re drunk.”

“And you’re drunk too sometimes, and that’s when you spill some beans about that fabled February lover.” Gaim tapped the side of his forehead. “I remember all these beans, motherfucker.”

Tindré cringed, mumbled ‘language’ beneath her breath, and hid her very real frustrations by drinking. With the upper hand in the conversation shifted, Gaim went on:

“You know, I don’t even think you’re being very subtle about it. That guy, whoever he is, and however” he harked his throat and mimicked her nasal voice “ _ aaaawful _ he might be-” there were a bout of coughs “that miracle-man is like a balm on your prickly personality. You become nicer whenever the ghost of his presence has stuck to your person.”

“Gaim, simmer down.” Tindré warned through clenched teeth. “I’m telling you he doesn’t exist.”

“Yeah right, and I don’t like Pentu.”

Both of them did a double take. Gaim’s mouth was left open, realising what had just happened. Then Tindré started laughing. It began like a devilish giggle, rose to a demonic cackle, and finished as a fully human stomach-straining howl of laughter. People at the bar stared their way, mumbling. Her prophecy had been fulfilled, because Gaim sat in this soundscape with a steadily rising blush. He didn’t even drink to drown it out, because it was already too late.

Tindré fished her phone out of her purse.

“You’re ever so right Gaim. You  _ don’t like her _ , just like  _ I’m not _ texting  _ anyone _ in particular.”

He was still stunned, all while her neatly manicured fingers tapped away at her phone. His swimming, wet, drunk world was softly spinning.

“Why do I even hang out with you?”

“Old memories, and because you think I’m nice to you. Speaking of, do you want another drink?”

“Yeah… But no. I don’t think you’re nice.” Gaim stared himself blind at the bar counter. “I don’t even think I’m nice myself.”

Pentu laid her cutlery to rest, finished with her meal.

“Who’s he? He’s the accountant at the bureau, and he’s nice I guess.” she said, putting on an extra sweet smile towards her curtains. “He might be a little brash in his method, but his heart is in the right place.”

She took a quick glance his way. Krev’s posture had stiffened, and he dried his mouth in a vain attempt to hide his frown. He had always been like an open book when it was just the two of them. She provoked his feelings, because she knew exactly what they were. He hid them poorly, perhaps because he wanted her to see it all.

“How old is he?” Krev asked. He feigned a smile. “Over sixty?”

“I don’t know actually. Around my age? He looks young for a gith.”

“Githyanki or githzerai?”

“No clue.”

"No clue? I thought that was a vital divide in their culture." He mocked, arms crossed.

"Well, that culture is old and irrelevant when he's foremost another Sigilite citizen." Her eyes slimmed. "Things are different in the big city."

Krev scoffed. "You're getting awfully defensive."

"You're getting awfully aggressive."

"What? Me? I'm just asking about this apple-juice man." There was a short laughter. "It sounds like you hardly know him!"

"And why does that matter to you?"

Krev opened his mouth to answer. Then he closed it again. An indignant blush filled his silence. His eyes pleaded with Pentu. She looked back at him with nothing but bitterness.

"You hate it when other men are around me." She finally pronounced.

"Please." He whined. Krev leaned against the table, hiding his embarrassed face. "Please don't start this now."

"Start what? Calling code red on your entire being?"

"On my heart!" He protested into his palms. "You wound me, and you know that… Please. I didn't come here to fight."

Pentu rose from her seat. Leaving Krev to his display of sorrow, she cleared the table around him. She went about her duties as a host, and just about finished every chore before he stirred again. The moment Pentu headed for the bathroom he intercepted her.

"Pentu…" he said softly. He opened his arms, asking for a hug. She didn't enter the offered embrace. It left him standing, awkwardly. In that manner he stammered forth: "I was thinking about opals…"

"Opals? What for?"

"Our rings."

There was a sharp exhale from Pentu's body. It was a bit of laughter. It felt like a stab, puncturing her lung. The air needed to get out somehow.

"Rings with inset stones or diamonds are out of fashion for the working woman." Pentu quoted from a marriage magazine. "It will suffice, and stand the test of time, to have a simple gold band on one's precious finger."

Krev experienced this plastic persona of hers with concern. Uncertain he fidgeted.

"So you just want some gold?"

"No, incest is also out of fashion." She replied, still in this fake magazine author's voice. Finally her reeling head was centering in on her own thoughts. "I don't want to marry you, Krev."

"But it's almost time!" 

Krev's volume had risen, to pronounce this childishly stubborn cry of defiance. His good behaviour was cracking at the seams. Fists clenched, he stood breathing heavily on the spot.

"You're almost twenty five." He repeated, for the two sentences meant the same. His eyes held Pentu hostage. "I've waited all these years, and you haven't found anyone else to marry. You promised you would give in, if only I waited!"

"I'm not twenty five yet." She said through clenched teeth. "You hold no power over me until the-"

"But I will! Nobody will marry you!"

"You don't know that!"

Both adult cousins had risen to shouts at this point. The fire in their black blood called for violence. The tension in the room begged for the fight to get physical. But that would be the easy way out.

The hard way was for them both to stand, waiting for the other to throw the first punch. Neither of them did.

"Please." He begged.

"No."

"Please!"

"I've said no!"

"I have done nothing to be undeserving of your love!"

Pentu held her tongue. She held back a flood of abuse she could return to him tenfold. Krev stood panting, and nothing came of his budding tears.

"Krev, I will walk past you, and into the bathroom. When I exit from there, I will go straight to bed. Tomorrow we wake up at half past seven, and leave the house at quarter past eight. You're going to go home." After swallowing she added. "We will speak no more of unnecessary things."

Krev shook his head. "You're perfect. There's nobody else in this whole world who will ever surpass you."

Pentu showed no reaction.

"I'm walking past you now."

Krev returned to his home. His dark apartment didn't greet him. The countryside complex was recently built, at a comfortable cranny of the small town. All his neighbours were families. He lived here alone.

Or so it seemed.

He put his shoes on his side of the half empty shoe rack. Every single storage he owned was divided into twos. Meticulously his belongings never passed the invisible lines drawn in those spaces.

In the bathroom he threw out the old set of girly shampoo, unused. That shelf of the shower rack was empty for less than a minute. He replaced it with the current brand, bought and sourced in Tokyo. All of his old detergent went in the trash. He took a deep breath of his shirt, which she had washed for him. Soon all the rest of his clothes would smell the same.

Quickly he changed the brand of sanitary pads, mumbling that a girl had to have her privacy. Part of him wondered why Pentu had made a switch after more than seven years.

Krev put a carton of apple juice in his fridge. It took him a while. He stared at the drink, as if it would harm him. A worry nagged at the back of his mind.

Then the handsome tiefling bachelor walked around and checked all of his doors, pulled down all of his blinds, and locked every way in or out of his world.

With utmost reverence he unlocked a drawer in his bedroom. At first glance it was filled with photo albums and knick knacks. On further inspection it was a hidden shrine. There was only one subject to all of these photos, carefully cut out from their context to fit his. Krev picked up the centrepiece. It was a framed portrait of Pentu, smiling for the camera.

It stood across him as he ate. It sat beside him while he lounged. It rested by him while he slept. All of his half-empty apartment was holding its breath, waiting for the momentous day when she would move in and make it whole.


	12. Overtime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The real estate agents visit a shrine. The Dragon's Den is live. Pentu has another date. Then it happens quite fast. Weekend overtime is rewarded with Sunday dinner and drinks. Pentu and Gaim ride the same train home. Together they make it back to safety. Pentu sees something she wishes she hadn't.

“All bow.” said the deep voice of Wilford.

The whole team of Found Dragon Real Estate took a deep bow. Such a diligent team of five made the regular Friday morning at the shrine seem more important than it was. For them it was a momentous day. Within the hour their housing ad for the Dragon’s Den would go live, and they would start taking reservations for bookings on Monday. Here, finished with all of the prep, the entire team prayed for the success of the sale.

At least they were supposed to.

Pentu’s mind strayed, and she prayed the date she had scheduled tonight would be the one.

Gaim’s heart beat, and he prayed that this dangerous fancy would pass soon enough.

“All rise.”

Together they clapped, and made their way out of the area for worship. All of their faces were filled with that tingle of religious energy which made one look more awake and excited for the future. The shrine maiden gracefully nodded at them as they left.

Bifrost had a bit of trot in his step.

“It’s finally happening. Say Wilford, should we make sure to share this around more on social media?”

“Only if you want to.” replied their old boss. “We’re launching this sale the traditional way. I don’t think we’ll need more than that.”

“If so I will!” ensured the centaur. “If anything I want to share my excitement with my followers!”

“The ad turned out really nice.” Pentu agreed. “I think I’ll show it to my family. It’s not like they would ever buy it, but it certainly is an apartment to marvel at.”

“Here’s to hoping the right kind of people spot it and start bidding…” mumbled Andi, lost in less positive thoughts.

“Lighten up, you’re off the clock for today.” said Gaim. “Because we are, right Wilford?”

“Yes. I expect you all on time this Monday, because when our business hours open, that’s when it happens.”

There was a chorus of ‘yes’ and ‘I understand’ from the team. For now they had a last weekend of free time to look forward to.

Pentu’s date was blushing. The half-orc corrected his glasses and harked his throat.

“I’ll have you know, I’ve never gotten as many compliments in one date before.”

“I have heard that I’m more ‘forward’ than other girls.” Pentu fluttered, eyelashes batting. “Do you like it? Should I stop?”

“Perhaps you should.” he replied sternly. “It feels forced. I’m wondering if you have any ulterior motives.”

The wrench was thrown in Pentu’s machine, and her rapant advance lost all of its steam. Her posture slumped. Her face betrayed that sorrowful despair.

“Oh… Sorry. It’s just… I really think I could fall in love with you. Maybe spend the rest of my life with you…”

“I’m flattered, but that’s a little too fast for me.”

Crushed again. Pentu felt like crying. Thankfully she got distracted by her phone buzzing. It was an excuse to look away.

“One moment, please.” she said. Facing her phone she took a chance to dry the ghost of her tears.

Bifrost texted once. Before she had read it all he had texted twice. Her phone was blowing up by the force of one man alone. But the centaur had all the more reasons to be excited.

A famous blogger, otherwise anonymous, must have either been a secret follower of Bifrost or happened upon the housing ad itself. Either way there was a blogpost freaking out over the Dragon’s Den, sharing all the best pictures and raving over what a dream home the place was. That blogpost was going viral. In a mere hour it had already taken off, and was shooting towards the stars. 

Better yet, the blogger made an uneducated guesstimate of the final price, severely overshooting their prognosis. The mass of the internet repeated it like truth, agreeing that such a price was fair.

Before Pentu knew better it was Saturday, and she was back at work. The entire office had been called in for emergency overtime. Already their mailboxes were being overfilled by prospective buyers, or regular people pretending to be such. All of them needed to be taken seriously. Bifrost and Andi were overhauling their viewing schedule, to allow for more people to visit the Dragon’s Den, in order to maximise the people bidding. All of their prep-work needed to be expanded. Pentu contacted their other stray clients to beg for an extension, as this matter would take precedence. Rough as it was, everything was falling into place.

“CHEERS!” called all five employees, their glasses colliding.

It was Sunday evening, and up until this point their workload had been intense. But despite all odds, they had managed to quadruple the capacity for this real estate deal, all in two days of work. Wilford had demanded that they all go out to celebrate this feat. Emergency overtime needed emergency dinner and drinks.

The team was seated at a cosy izakaya, with an all-you-can-eat as well as an all-you-can-drink-package included in the deal. Already their table was laden with glazed meats, stir fried veggies, edamame at several stations, and starchy delights with cheese. For a band of starving office workers it was heaven.

Especially for Gaim it was more than paradise, with just a sprinkle of hell. Wilford was paying, so he could drink to no abandon, and enjoy loads of cooked food otherwise already out of his budget. On the flip side Pentu was there, in a non-work situation. He still didn’t know what the fuck to do. Luckily he had managed to avoid sitting next to her, but the company was small enough that her presence was always there.

“Do they even realise that we’re people replying to these emails?” Andi lamented. “Some of them were seriously so  _ rude! _ ”

“It’s a shame we can’t tell the difference between an internet troll and a tactless philanthropist.” Bifrost agreed. “Some of the rudest clients sometimes end up bidding the highest.”

“And that’s why we’re nice to everyone.” said Wilford, sipping his beer. “It’s going to be tough, but I know we’ll all make it.”

“Cheers to that!” burped Gaim. “Cheers to Wilford having faith in us!”

Everyone raised their glass again. Among the drinks and draughts, Pentu’s glass of water caught Gaim’s eye. He followed it’s trail, all the way to her lips - oh shit, no, no, no. Gaim drank his own beer with his eyes closed, accidentally downing all of it. Whops. Still when he opened his eyes they were drawn to that glass of water, right as Pentu put it down next to…

“Hey Pentu why do you have two glasses?” slipped his mouth, drunk beyond precaution.

“Oh this?” her same hand touched the second drink. “It’s apple juice, just like you taught me.”

“Huh?”

The good cheer around the table let out a bit of giggling. Gaim obviously didn’t remember, and the dumb look on his face was entertainment to all.

“Teach you what now with apple juice?” Bifrost asked, eyebrows far up below his sweeping bangs.

“Oh, it’s silly.” Pentu laughed. “But basically you just put a splash of apple juice in a glass of water to make the most diluted juice ever. I quite like the taste, ever since Gaim introduced me to it.”

“Yeah, no,  _ now _ I remember!” Gaim called out, pointing with his empty glass. “But what? You’re still doing that? And I wouldn’t call it ‘teaching’ as I really did it as a prank.”

“Prank?” echoed Andi, suspicious.

“Oh don’t mind what it was.” Pentu insisted. “It was well received, and I do it to my own drinks all the time now.”

At the finish of that sentence, she flashed Gaim a smile. His heart clenched, because he could not deny it. Ever since his tongue had slipped with Tindré he knew he was in deep. Deep enough to be uncomfortable. He liked Pentu. This cute reveal that she did something new and special in her life thanks to him… It felt like she was wringing his heart dry. He wanted more to drink.

“But I didn’t see you play chemist and mix your drinks earlier.” Bifrost pointed out.

“Oh, I did it discreetly with a spoon.”

Curses ground against Gaim’s teeth. She was cute. He hated this. His hand was already pressing on the waiter button to order three beers at once, he didn’t care, because good lord he needed to drink more. It didn’t matter if beer made him sleepy! That’s what happens when hard liquor isn’t included in the all-you-can-drink!

Pentu didn’t notice that Gaim essentially avoided her in the conversation for the rest of the night. Her heart was already beating fast, only because he had noticed the apple juice thing. It felt odd to repeat to the creator that she had adapted it for everyday use. It felt awkward to remember how it had sparked an argument with Krev. Any thoughts of Krev reminded her how she was wasting time. It loomed at the back of her head, no matter how much fun she wanted to have.

The others didn’t mind. Andi, Bifrost and Wilford were a power triad in terms of real estate dealings. Their party that night became a walk down memory lane, celebrating their past successes and promising coming victories. Together they seemed bright, like electric angels at christmas time. Perhaps it was the rosy cheeks and the restaurant lighting. Their glow distracted anyone else from how glum both Pentu and Gaim were.

That changed soon. In the dark of the night, under the harsh light of the train station, on a platform separated from the three joyous ones, all that gloom showed starkly. Gaim swayed where he stood. Pentu harked her throat.

“We usually leave the office at different times, so it’s the first time we take the train together.”

“Yeah?” Gaim burped.

“Nothing, I just thought about it.”

Their train arrived with a metal rumble. Both of them had their eyes steeled forward on the flashing windows. The door exhaled sharply as it welcomed them inside.

Gaim immediately plopped down on the closest seat with a corner to lean on. His hands were deep inside of his pockets, and his gaze was looking at everything but his coworker. Pentu began to sit down next to him, but was stopped.

“Hey, the train’s almost empty.” Gaim said. Somehow Pentu still looked at him with bewilderment instead of understanding. The gith grit his teeth before he continued: “You don’t have to sit next to me. There’s like... A million seats.”

“Oh… But I thought we were gonna talk.”

“Sorry, I’m tired. Beer fucking sucks.”

Pentu sat down on the opposite row. The train started rolling, and the movement sent a shudder up her spine. If Gaim didn’t want to talk, then what was she supposed to distract herself with? Social media was a bore, and didn’t help keeping her anxious thoughts at bay.

The gith closed his eyes. His drunk head hurt, because the drunk head is a bit more honest. Did he  _ have _ to tell her off like that? She looked so damn sad about it! The guilt that followed his avoidance of both his own feelings and hers was a cocktail of its own. For now he wanted to swallow it, let it pass, and not think about anything…

Pentu was prodding at her phone. It did its best. Nothing was fun. Everything was wasting time. Then she heard the first snore.

Perking up she noticed that Gaim had properly fallen asleep. His mouth was open, neck bent awkwardly, tongue relaxed. That sparked interest. Pentu observed Gaim’s sleeping pile of a person like never before. Here on the train there were no dividers to hide his face, posture or anything like that. She had of course seen drunks sleeping on trains before, but this was the same man that she worked with every day.

The train rattled and shook. Gaim jolted up in his sleep, still completely out of it. Another rattle shifted his balance. Unceremoniously Gaim’s body accepted gravity’s offerings. He fell down on the long seat like it had been his own sofa. A chain fell forward to hint at a hidden necklace hanging beneath his dress shirt.

Pentu found that her heart was racing. This felt forbidden somehow. While a regular drunk would have made her feel  _ second hand _ embarrassment, Gaim made her feel pure  _ first hand  _ embarrassment. To see him sleeping like this, laying down instead of sitting… Wasn’t that kind of intimate? Like catching someone with their shirt up? Pentu’s virgin thoughts questioned the realm of pure happenings in a fervor.

It was just in time that she registered that their stop was coming up. She hurried to rise and shake Gaim’s shoulder. He woke, admirably, and had to be pulled off of the train in his disoriented state.

“No I’m fine!” claimed the drunk man with all of his heart believing it to be true.

“Are you sure?” questioned the sober woman, her whole mind set on helping him.

Outside of the station Gaim was stumbling. His balance had significantly worsened after his nap, and it was evident to anyone exactly how wasted he was.

“Yeah, sure, fffh-, I’ll make it. See you at work tomorrow!” Gaim turned around to walk off.

Pentu was immediately by his side to stop him from walking into a mailbox. It grazed his chest while she narrowly held him back.

“Oops…”

“Gaim, I think it’s best if I walk you home.”

“But-...”

“It will be faster, and you will get more sleep before tomorrow.”

“Okay, okay, but no holding on to me. I’m not a kid, you know?”

He pushed off of the mailbox and started his haggling walk. Pentu nodded, and followed closely behind. According to his wishes, she didn’t hold on to him. She only gave him tactical pushes whenever obstacles loomed near.

Gaim was not thinking straight, nor walking straight. The awkward silence was wearing him thin.

“So uh, you want some chit-chat?”

“No, I respect that you’re tired, like you said on the train.”

“Why are you always so damn stiff, Pentu?”

She perked up. His face was in darkness from the most recent streetlight.

“I, uh…”

“Come on, why are you surprised?”

“Gaim, you’re drunk and-”

“And drunk words are sober thoughts!” he exclaimed, turning sharply on his heel.

Pentu felt a deja-vu. It was just like her date with Xigmund, except the roles had been switched. Gaim was the drunkard falling. She was the person catching him. For a precious moment she held a man in her arms, face to face with his smooth gith features. It didn’t last long.

“Gaim, I’m not going to take anything you say tonight to heart, because drunk words are always drunk!” she chastised him quickly. “But I won’t deny that I’m stiff. It’s professional!”

In a most unprofessional way she swung his arm over her shoulder. Heaving him up, she took charge to walk in a straighter path than before. Gaim was dumbfounded. His legs moved, strung along by her bodily strength.

He started giggling maniacally. Pentu blushed, but did her best to ignore him. She didn’t understand what was funny. Maybe bodily contact. Maybe her insistence on helping him.

Gaim finally gave her a light jab in the ribs.

“You’re real dangerous, aren’t ‘cha?”

“Well, you saw my martial arts display for Kei.”

“Oh right, master Pentu, I’m sorry.” he laughed again. “Yeah, you can beat people up.”

“Or drag you wherever you need to go. Right or left?”

“Left, then a right…” Gaim leaned on Pentu a little harder. The heat between them was noticeable in the late summer night. “Why did you learn karate?”

“My aunt and uncle run a dojo, actually.”

“Uh-huh… Where?”

“The countryside Gaim. You know this.”

“No, I actually hardly listened to your life story while you were new in the office.”

“Wha- Gaim!” Pentu protested, glancing towards him indignant. “People don’t admit that”

“What about drunk people?”

“Yes, but-”

“Hey, I already explained beer is a bitch. I usually drink anything but that, because I hate being this sleepy.”

He yawned, becoming heavier for her to drag. Pentu stayed focused, making that fateful right turn. She was out of instructions and tried looking at Gaim for more. The gith was smiling. She saw no hatred of beer in his face. She saw peace. Her heartstrings were strummed by the hand of jealousy. All of her words choked up in her throat.

“Hey Pentu…”

She nodded, still walking.

“Let’s not tell anyone about this at the office.”

“Okay.”

“People might think we’re dating.” He took a step of his own, pointing to a building. “And oop, here’s my stop!”

Pentu was frozen like a deer in the headlights. Gaim was able to slip out of her grip with no resistance. She snapped out of it in time to see him trip, and catch himself by the rail of the stairs. She hurried after him.

“Gaim, how drunk are you?”

“Oh, very.”

“Blackout drunk?”

“Pffffshh, possibly.”

Pentu hurried after him up the stairs, which was a paradox of itself. All of Gaim’s steps were slow, heaving and laborsome. Still she took each step after him the moment he stepped over it, afraid to lose any time.

“Why shouldn’t we tell people I helped you?”

“I told you.” he burped into his fist. “Not saying it again.”

“No, but would it bother you if people thought that?”

“They would tease me, I’m sure.”   
“But do you mind?”

“Bifrost can be meaner than he looks-” Gaim arrived at his floor with a sigh. His hazy mind made his eyebrows furrow. “Wait, what was the question?”

He looked her way. The pristine businesswoman was standing in the stairs, hands clenched by her sides. Something about her nervous features sent him back to high-school, where confessions were wrought out of youthful rashness.

Then Pentu changed her mind.

Gaim grunted, as the mind spike of angst from her made his head hurt. It pierced through his blanket of alcohol, straight to the real pain in him. Leaning down as if about to throw up, he massaged his temples.

“Fuck, you’re loud.” he murmured under his breath. Then he distracted her from it by shoving a fistfull of keys in her direction. “Please, unlock my door.”

Pentu jumped on the chance to get out of the situation she had foolishly put herself in. She hated herself. She had already sworn any Found Dragon staff off her options, yet here she preyed on Gaim himself. She was such a vulture. He was nothing but a coworker, and an alcoholic, who needed help. The lock was fed several keys until it clicked. 

Her hand pushed down on the handle. Before she opened the door, Gaim stopped her. His hand was over hers. Pentu’s guilt-laden heart sank.

“Don’t open the door.” Gaim insisted. “It’s dirty.”

Thus Pentu was ushered away, as Gaim snuck through the barest crack of an opening. He was leaning out, eyelids heavy, expression uncertain.

“Good night?” suggested Pentu.

“Yeah, good night. See you tomorrow!”

He shut the door hard. A slip of mail fell out of the mailbox, which ought to illustrate how full the basket inside must be. Pentu sighed and crouched down to pick it up. It flared up, magical letters rearranging itself to be read by any reader in any language. Another spell in the paper flickered, and compelled Pentu to read it.

It was an eviction notice. This was the final warning out of many, claimed the slip. Gaim would be kicked out of his apartment on Tuesday the next week. Reason? He had not paid his rent. It was non-negotiable.

Pentu put the slip back in the mailbox. She was not supposed to have seen that. In the dark of the night she felt like screaming, but made no sound.


	13. The Big Twist

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shit goes south. Someone's to blame. We get to what we've all been waiting for. Thank you for reading.

The din murmur of a city’s lungs filled the Monday morning. Trains rattled along their rails. Feet thrummed against the pavement. Electrical tidbits from streetlights, shops and doors sang their little tunes. Car engines did their constant exhale where they drove. Far off a horn sounded. This blanket of sounds was comfy and natural to all denizens who called the cage their home. All things considered, it was a peaceful morning in Sigi-Lite-Tokyo.

It was one of those mornings that never last. Tires screeched, ripping the blanket of sound apart.

Pentu slammed open the door, and rushed up the stairs to the Found Dragon office.

“Sorry, I missed the train!”

Inside, every single phone unit was ringing. The shrill alarm of their cry made her stressed heart beat even faster. Sweat beaded at her temple from the running start of her day. Rising from her bow, she noticed something was wrong. 

The executive director’s desk was empty. Andi stared at her, clutching her personal phone like a baby bird in odds with the four others crying for attention in the room. Bifrost was speaking away at his station, but his eyes were steeled on Andi. The blue tiefling girl blinked rapidly, her wings half unfurled.

“Wilford was just hit by a car.”

Pentu’s heart stopped. Then her body acted on it’s own, autopilot pulling her ghost along like a balloon. At her station she picked up the phone and answered it in a perfect business voice. The caller asked about the Dragon’s Den. Pentu politely asked if they may call them back within the hour. She took the number down. Said her goodbyes. With a press of a button she took the next call, and here the loud symphony stopped. There had only been two callers in line. Rinse, repeat. Call them later.

Having freed the office from the phone ringing, Pentu grabbed Andi by the shoulders and forced her to sit down on a chair.

“Tell me again, what happened?”

Andi swallowed, wetting the mouth which had dried while she was frozen in shock. Small beads formed in her eyes when she blinked.

“He called me.” she began, looking at her cellphone as if to check if it was still there. “He said he was in an ambulance, and that his leg was broken. I heard a voice tell him to hang up, to inhale… Inhale… Something, I don’t remember.”

“Did he say anything else?”

A new caller reached their line, and all phones started ringing again. Pentu’s eyes snapped at the sound, and she bitterly counted that Gaim was not there to help them. At that thought, a long arm waved in her vision. Bifrost signed that he would get it, as his smiling professional face was obviously saying goodbyes on his end.

“I didn’t hear it.” Andi confessed. “He said something, but the… The voices of the paramedics drowned it out. But he said something, I know.”

“Okay, I see.” Pentu took a deep breath. She put on a brave smile. “There’s nothing you have to worry about Andi. It was an accident, I’m sure.”

Bifrost picked up the next caller to his phone.

“Hello, this is Found Dragon Real Estate, you’re speaking to Bifrost.”

“Did you forget about me?” laughed a vixen voice in the receiver.

The syllable of  _ She _ formed on Bifrost’s stunned lips. Then he listened. Sometimes he said yes. Pentu and Andi didn’t notice.

“Broken legs are not that bad, and considering he was speaking…” Pentu explained.

“He had not broken any ribs.” Andi finished. “His injuries are probably manageable.”

“Exactly! We just need to make it one day on our own, and we don’t even have any viewings scheduled today. It’s just a hell of phonecalls and emails, but remember what we said yesterday?”

“Uhm, I don’t…”

“That Wilford believes in us! He believes in us even if he’s not here.”

“Right!” The fire was returning to Andi’s eyes. “We can make this!”

Bifrost put his phone down, speaking up:

“Shemeshka will be here in ten minutes.”

The two tieflings went back into shock, staring at the centaur.

Like a perfect copy, Gaim entered the office in the same rush as Pentu had minutes prior.

“Sorry, I missed two trains!”

His scene of disaster was more muted than the one Pentu had found. His hungover eyes blinked at the silent explosion going on inside of his coworkers’ heads.

“Eh? What’s going on? Did someone get killed?”

“ _ SHEMESKA WILL BE HERE IN TEN MINUTES” _ Andi  **shrieked** **_._ **

Those ten minutes were spent in a whirlwind of decisions. Andi’s panic brought her enough clarity to decide things, and decide them hard. She and Bifrost would need to stay in the office and answer the clients calls. Pentu and Gaim would face  _ she _ together, yet alone. In retrospect the previous meeting with the yugoloth business mogul seemed like a dream. When Wilford was there to be the figurehead of Found Dragon  _ she _ felt predictable. This time they didn’t know what to expect, and that scared them.

But whatever happened, they could not let Wilford down.

Gaim and Pentu waited in the shopfront. The tension in the air made it all the more obvious when the black limousine rolled up outside.

“Do you think she’s responsible for Wilford’s injury?” Pentu asked under her breath.

“I wouldn’t put her above it…” Gaim replied. His eyes slimmed, watching the parasol shape of their enemy get closer to the shop. “Or below it.”

The bell rang as it always did when the door was used. But Shemeska was out of her concealing cocoon faster than before it had finished ringing.  _ She _ stepped into the scene with a flourish. Today’s fashion was a tight cocktail dress with a mermaid skirt. The pattern of the embroidered bodice was a muted scene of flowers with bugs hidden among them. Her fox’s grin was already showing all of its teeth the moment she smiled.

“Oh hello! How nice to see both of you again.”

Both Pentu and Gaim bowed. Shemeshka pulled out her own chair and sat down, before anyone had anything to say about it. The confused moment when Pentu moved towards the tea,  _ she  _ put her hand up.

“I’d like to get straight to business today. Say, where’s Wilford?”

Gaim harked his throat. “At the hospital. He was hit by a car this morning.”

“On the first day of the Dragon’s Den taking reservations?” Shemeshka asked, her eyes widening in glee. “How unfortunate!”

“Indeed.” muttered Gaim.

“Especially considering the deal has gained such traction on social media, wouldn’t you say?”  _ She _ was putting on a coy display of disbelief, while stating the details of her evil master plan.

“So you’ve noticed. I humbly thank you for your consideration.” Pentu said, bowing once more, now seated. “It was entirely out of our control, but it seems like luck smiled in our favour.”

The fox-lady let out a polite laugh.

“Luck, isn’t it?”

Something in the way she pronounced it made Gaim and Pentu both immediately decide  _ she _ was pissed. The viral blogpost was not a string which Shemeshka had pulled, and it blatantly upset the yugoloth. All the other misfortunes, such as her occupying their time and Wilford being hit was more directly and proudly displayed on her belt. The dread in the room promised there was still more to come.

“Indeed, luck.” Pentu repeated.

“Well, it will be hard for the four of you to pull through now.” Shemeshka cut short, playing with her fan between her fingers. “I wonder if your clients will appreciate a real estate agency working on a barebones crew, while also being stressed to death.”

“We’ll manage.” claimed Gaim.

“Unless you don’t?” The fox’s eyelashes fluttered. “Fiend Housing Solutions would be willing to offer some agents of their own as consultants in this deal.”

“No dice.”

“Naw, really?”

“Bitch, why are you even here?” Gaim snapped. “I know we can both imagine what Wilford would say in this situation, and you can bet your tail that me and Pentu will stick to what Wilford would have wanted. It’s a fact that he would not want  _ anything _ from you.”

Pentu’s pulse was rushing. While she admired Gaim’s bravery, she feared his foolishness. Shemeshka didn’t seem to mind. She unfurled her fan, to lazily fan herself from the side.

“... I do suppose you have a point.” said she, musing comfortably. “But disregarding Wilford, I expected this meeting to be between the members present. I was looking forward to a good chat with you Gaim, and this vapid little good-girl with no voice.”

The insult choked Pentu. Gaim’s fists tightened. Shemeshka’s evil smile was on display once more.

“After all…” began Shemeshka slowly. Her fan held the image of a serene green field, flapping to and fro beside her face. “I’m here to make a personal offer, on friendly terms.”

“Like hell you are-” Gaim retorted.

“Hey now. You’ve inherited this grudge from Wilford, Gaim. When have I ever done anything to hurt you?”

“When you ran over my boss-”

“What? Me? Please.” the fox laughed loudly. “Besides, did you break your leg? No, I don’t think so. Now sit down boy, and hear me out for once.”

Gaim was already sitting down, but with her snappy demand his attitude took a seat as well. The tension between the two was palpable, and that exact potence made Pentu feel unseen, unheard, and unspoken for. She didn’t know why she was here. All she could do was wait, and tactically hope she could help the company in this…Whatever this was.

“Fine.” Gaim said to break the tense silence. “I’ll listen. What do you want?”

“I want to give you a job, Gaim.”

“Huuuuh?” The gith leaned forward and slammed his fist on the table. “Don’t kid yourself, I already have a job! Why would I want to quit here?”

“Oh, I don’t know…” played the fox, smiling wide. “Maybe I could offer some benefits you can’t refuse.”

“Like what, betraying Wilford? Fuck no, I’m not here to play puppet for you to get your revenge like a child in a bad divorce.”

She laughed at his joke. Pentu glanced at Gaim, and noticed how he grit his teeth in an open frown.

“Shemeska, I’d rather be unemployed than work for you.”

“And why is that?”

“Because I hate you.”

“Oh no, Gaim, not that.” Her eyes slimmed. “You don’t want to leave this little pond of yours because you know that you would fail.”

There was a beat before the yugoloth continued.

“You’re awful at working together with others, Gaim, and you take pride in this. I speculate that if you were put in a larger accounting department, you’d crash and burn. Now perhaps there’s a part of me out to get at Wilford, but no… This is about you Gaim. I want to watch you fail.”

There was a seductive draw at the end of her speech. The hairs in both Gaim and Pentu’s neck stood on end. Their inability to reply to such forward advances left Shemeska to shrug, and keep speaking.

“I have arranged an apartment for you, Gaim, where you will live rent free as long as you remain employed at any of my establishments. Considering what I’ve found out about your current living situation, it ought to be a compelling upgrade.”

“Hey…” Gaim said, his raspy voice rumbling deep. “If you think you can bribe  _ me _ with free real esta-”

“Gaim.” said Pentu. She had realised that he was not aware. Considering the state of his mailbox, he couldn’t be. They got eye contact for the brief moment when Pentu pronounced his death sentence: “You’re getting evicted tomorrow.”

“... What?”

“An eviction notice fell out of your mailbox yesterday, and I was just going to put it back inside, but it had a read-me spell on it.” Pentu hurried to explain. The embarrassment made her break off their connection and tell the final part while looking down. “It said you haven’t been paying your rent, and you will be evicted this tuesday.”

Stunned Gaim turned to face the enemy. The yugoloth was leaning on the table with a brimming wide smile. Now her bribes made sense. The threat of homelessness loomed, and she knew this.

“But no, I’m on terms with my landlord…” Gaim tried in denial. “He knows I’ll pay soon-”

“Oh, but maybe he’s not on your side any more, hmmm?” said Shemeshka. “And all those friends, who might be willing to let you crash on their couch? Do you really think I would leave such flimsy connections to stand in your favour? They would get contacted in due time. It would be less trouble for everyone if you just took my offer. Then you don’t have to bother anyone with your failure of a life, along with the finances you hold… I know about your debts.”

Despair had taken hold of the man. Already he was sinking in his posture, turning into shambles before their eyes. Shemeshka loved every second of it, and twisted the knife.

“What a shame. Wilford believed in you, Gaim, yet here you are. If he knew what I knew he would already be dissapointed.”

A real, live grunt of anxiety left the gith. Gaim was nearing rock bottom, ready to break down in the shop. Shemeshka stood up, and reached a hand out towards him.

“Come with me, and you’ll get relief from this hell, as long as you dance in mine.”  _ she _ chuckled. “After all, there’s nobody who can help you any more.”

Pentu stood up.

“I’ll marry him.”

Time stopped. Her sentence was directed at Shemeshka, but naturally hit Gaim too. Both of them reacted. Gaim jerked up from his hunched anxiety. Shemeshka pulled her hand back, and seemed to lose her sense of superiority. But beyond these two listeners, Pentu said it to herself. Because of this threatening situation, Pentu felt rashly prepared to commit to Gaim for life. As an innocent bystander to Gaim’s peril, she thought she understood. As a tortured soul with her own troubles, Pentu found answers for both of them. The decision to marry Gaim had been lit like a match in her chest, and soon spread throughout her entire body. Confidence flared up like fire.

“Excuse me?” asked Shemeshka.

“Marriage is all he needs right now!” Pentu claimed with a zeal. “As legally bound partners there will be double the income, half the rent and tax benefits to boost our finances. If the rates on the current loans are unreasonable, it is possible for us to switch them for joint loans in better bureaus and then pay those together! My credit score is impeccable, and will balance his out! Plenty of people have married out of debt, and Gaim might just be the next one.”

Shemeshka, still standing, fished her fan off the table. Tapping her chin with it, she sized Pentu up. The yugoloth was obviously listening, and considering the situation carefully.

“You mentioned marrying him today?”

“Yes, the church of Sune offers drop in marriage-vows every day. They don’t discriminate, and are seen as legitimate in the eyes of the Fraternity of Order.”

“And you would marry him, just like that?” she scoffed. “There has to be something in it for you, girlie.”

“And so what if it is?” Pentu bit back. “For all that you have stalked Gaim, you sure as hell don’t know the first thing about me.”

Shemeshka allowed that to hang in the air. She looked back at Gaim, and smiled. The shocked gith was staring up at his coworker in awe, mingled with fear. The clever fox liked that, a lot.

“You know what? This is interesting.” said Shemeshka. “I will allow this, because I am curious to see where it leads.”

The graceful fox-woman stepped off, and sashayed towards the door. Her tail was swinging, displaying glee in her step. Both Pentu and Gaim stayed where they were. Shemeshka took hold of the doorhandle, pausing before departure.

“It really doesn’t matter to me. After all, Gaim, I still think you will fail. I’ll be watching.” she said. “Send Wilford my regards!!”

And with that,  _ she  _ was gone. Left in the wake of the battle Pentu and Gaim basked in a mute uncertainty. He was still sitting down, staring at her like before. He had never looked away. She stood, and took deep breaths to calm herself down.

Gaim didn’t know what he felt. Pentu felt everything. Finally she turned towards him:

“Gaim, I truly mean what I said. I am ready to marry you, if you’d be willing to resort to such-”

The gith pushed the chair out with a screech. While he rose from the seat, it was not to stand. In front of Pentu, on the floor, he performed a prostrate bow. 

“Please take care of me.”

His bow towards her was that of a goon bowing to his yakuza boss, laying himself bare at their mercy. The scene was not romantic, but Pentu blushed.

“Oh, okay, uhm… Sure?”

“Please take care of me.” Gaim repeated, louder this time in.

Time flashed back to the day when Pentu said the same thing, as a new employee at the company.

“Gaim, you don’t have to-”

“PLEASE TAKE CARE OF ME!” Gaim shouted. He was putting his heart into it, because his heart was racing.

“Fine, I will! I promise I’ll take care of you!” Pentu screamed back. “Please take care of me too!”

“YEAH!” Gaim rose, reaching out to grab her hand. “Now let’s get married before I chicken out and think about it for too long!”

In the office upstairs Andi and Bifrost hadn’t noticed any screaming or shouting, both of them glued to their phones. The worker bees buzzed on, speaking in service while simultaneously tapping away at emails on their computer. Gaim came rushing up the stairs, which made them look away from their screens for a short moment.

“Me and Pentu fixed Shemeshka.” Gaim said, out of breath. “But we need to borrow the company car real quick, we’ll be back within the hour!”

Both centaur and tiefling offered a thumbs up. Gaim raced back down again, and leapt into the car which Pentu had already started. She speeded off before he had put on his seatbelt.

Despite their rushing, Gaim did have time to think. Was this an appropriate time to confess that you might have a crush on the woman you’re marrying? How would one go about saying that? Actually, considering her willingness to commit, did she like him too? Did Pentu have a crush on him? Gaim’s heart was racing at all of everything, unable to set itself on anything.

Pentu’s thoughts raced in a practical manner. The traffic called for her to break at a red light.

“SHIT!” she called out. “I forgot we need a witness. Hold on, we need to turn back.”

“And ask Andi or Bifrost to quit working?” Gaim retorted. “No, no way, I saw them at it and they don’t have time for this. The company needs them where they are right now.”

“Well, can you call anyone? We need someone to qualify for the vows!”

Gaim rubbed his forehead and looked out of the car. They were on a wide street running through the neighbourhood, often used by students going to and from school. It was long past the start of the day however, so there was no way-

“Hey, look!” Gaim shouted, leaning on the headboard in excitement. The light above them turned green. “Drive up to the curb, we have a witness!”

Ragnhild was casually skipping down the sidewalk. The music in her pink earpods made her unaware of the realtor car speeding towards her. The earpods were decorated with gems and stickers, and with coords more similar to a rainbow child’s necklace than a pair of cables. She happily twiddled her clawed fingers on a pair of those shiny plastic pearls when the car horn finally snapped her out of it.

“Get in loser! We need you for something!” Gaim shouted at her.

Ragnhild perked up. “You’ll give me a ride?”

“Fuck yeah, I’ll even give you money. Now get in our van!”

Against society’s advice Ragnhild complied, and happily took a seat. Pentu was clutching the steering wheel and gently slamming her head on it.

“No, Gaim, she won’t do. We need someone who’s eighteen!” she moaned.

“Ah, don’t worry, she is.”

“What?”

“Hey!” the dragon girl called out in the back seat. “Don’t just tell people that, Gaim! I trusted you to keep a secret.”

“Ragnhild, you told me you reveal your true age whenever it’s convenient, and trust me, it will be convenient to us today.”

Pentu had started driving away.

“Okay, but I have to be back in school before ten.” said Ragnhild with a shrug. “I had a doctor’s appointment, so I’m not technically late until then."

“That we’ll manage.” Gaim supposed, glancing at Pentu. She was a responsible, stressed out driver who kept her eyes on the road. “I believe this will be real fast actually.”

“What is? You still haven’t told me what we’re doing.”

“Me and Pentu are getting married.”

In the late Sigi-lite morning, the sound blanket had repaired itself. It had gotten louder as daytime activities were filling it with life. But here, in a company van closed off from the rest of the city, a single sound dominated the entire scene:

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHH???”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This! This right here is what it has all been leading up to! I didn't plan this, but somehow it ended up happening in chapter THIRTEEN! A magic, or cursed number, ahaha. Anyway, This! This was the core scene that I told my friends about which spiralled into this entire fic. As such, my friends have always known exactly how this was going to happen, and therefore "The Big Twist" didn't seem as big to them...  
> But what about you? You're supposedly a reader who came into this blind? Are you happy with this twist? Did it feel twisty enough? Were there enough foreshadowing to make it seem real?  
> Either way I hope you're looking forward to the real marriage plot going forward. There's still much more for this story to tell.


	14. Marriage, Check

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pentu and Gaim get married. Ragnhild witnesses. Later Ragnhild tries to question them. She gets no particular answers. Pentu tells Gaim about the bet. The reality of the situation sinks in. Pentu has won.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've decided that I want to update this fanfiction at least once a week. Fridays have been the day two updates in a row, so I might just aim for that. Thank you for reading!

The van labeled Found Dragon Real Estate stood parked outside of the temple of Sune. A lucky parking spot had opened up right next to the entrance. This in turn placed the car right front and centre in front of the holy building. One would say that the van didn’t fit into the surroundings. But a more accurate view was that the building stood out like a beautiful lone rose in a whisk of wheat. Sune was a god of beauty, happening to have governance over love. No building or object near it could hold a candle to its intricate swirling architecture.

Inside a glazed roof let natural sunlight into an atrium of a chapel. The church-like space was littered with mirrors, which brightened the place up even more. It made the temple have an aura best described as dazzling.

What dazzled Pentu the most was the singular eye of their priest. He was a cyclops, just like old Wodin who was still in the hospital, but also not like Wodin at all. Wodin had been a gruff working man, strong enough to boast about tales making cyclopses out to be monsters in other realms. This priest was no monster, but an absolute doll. Long lashes framed his clear and crystalline eye. The wide mouth below glistened with lipgloss as he preached. Pentu barely heard what he said.

Gaim stifled a cough, glancing at his cracked watch. This finally snapped Pentu out of it.

“Uhm, sorry.” she said, interrupting the private sermon held at their officiation. “Our witness has to be back in class by ten, so if you would mind, could we…?”

No hint of grimace or judgement clouded the beautiful priest’s face.

“Certainly.”

“Awh, don’t worry about it!” piped Ragnhild up, tapping away at her phone. “I can be late, this is real important. I mean, when is this ever going to happen again?”

“Never.” agreed Gaim. His voice sounded hoarse, or potentially like he was holding back some bile.

“But we also need to get back to work.” Pentu insisted, cold sweat beading at her temple. She was making herself out to be the bad guy through this reality check, but she was right!

A clipboard with civil marriage contracts had been brought out, and the priest kindly handed it to Gaim. The cyclop’s gaze was however gently smiling at Pentu.

“Please do not worry, love. If you wish to hurry this ceremony along, then the clergy of Sune will be happy to oblige.” He tilted his head. “But hurrying is not the same as stressing. Say, have you been stressed recently, miss Pentu?”

The dark eyes which had been ticking back and forth between Gaim’s writing hands and the priest’s face finally steeled themselves on the latter.

“Yes. How could you tell?”

“Ah, please take no offense, but your under eye bags look malnourished, and I don’t think you’ve properly moisturised.”

“Heh!” slipped out of Gaim. The gith crudely shoved the clipboard in Pentu’s direction for her to sign the documents. He straightened his otherwise constantly hunched back to face the cyclops. “What can you tell about my face then? I look worse than her.”

In all honesty he did. His yellow skin had deep crow’s feet by the inner corner of his eye, and the bags were noticeably darker and slightly sunken inwards. A pathetic swash of stray hair speckled his chin, unshaven due to the morning’s hungover awakening. The shadows of wrinkles on top of that made him look much older than he was.

Speaking of his age, Pentu noticed something on that document. Gaim’s social security number contained the date of his birth. She slowly turned her head to stare at her soon to be husband. He was one year younger than her.

The priest giggled.

“Naturally we can’t judge everyone by the same perimetres. I tell miss Pentu this, because I can see that she has strayed from her ideal self. You on the other hand, look quite comfortable in your own skin at the moment.”

Gaim was dumbfounded.

“Although I would question if this is the ideal self you want to remain.” said the priest, his long thick eyelash fluttering. “If you wish to improve your self image, the temple of Sune is happy to help.”

From the other side of the atrium the group leader for an ongoing beauty course sung out the next yoga pose they were to assume. A group of Sigilites of various races, ages and dispositions shifted from a downward dog into something less obscene. Ragnhild giggled, and took a quick picture with her phone.

“I want random yoga at my wedding too.” she chimed. The priest seemed to laugh with her.

Pentu penned the final signature. Done with the paperwork she handed the clipboard to their officiator. It was now that she noticed how bad her heart was beating. Did she just…?

The priest cleared his throat, gracefully.

“It is with the beauteous power bestowed upon me from Sune that I now sanctify this oath of love. May it remain prosperous, whatever life’s waves washes against its shores. Until fate does you two part… I now declare you husband and wife.”

She did it! Pentu felt a rush of blood throughout her entire body. She married someone, and it wasn’t Krev. Nausea came as an aftertaste to her epiphany, and she stumbled slightly as she turned to face Gaim. He stepped up, and caught her hand.

Both of them were caught like deers in each other’s headlights. They were now married.

“And thus…” the cyclops blinked serenely. “You may now kiss your spouse.”

Both blushed. Ragnhild’s phone camera was snapping like crazy. Even with the picture evidence assembled into a .gif of each movement, it was hard to tell who pulled away first. The fact of the matter was that they held hands, and then they did not. There was no kiss.

“Uhhh, we’ll deal with that later.” said Gaim.

“Yes, later.” said Pentu.

“Whaaaaaat? Are you for real?” said Ragnhild, lowering her phone.

The priest’s all seeing eye glanced from newlywed to newlywed, and finally to their third wheel.

“Hmm, while hurrying some things are necessary, other things may just well wait. Excuse me, young lady. Would you mind signing here as their witness?”

Back in the company car Pentu was responsibly driving according to the speed limit towards Ragnhild’s highschool. She caught glimpses of the white haired girl in the rearview mirror, just as much as she caught glances of her husband in the passenger seat. Had Pentu not held the steering wheel her hands would have been shaking.

“So, uh Ranghild…” Pentu started. “If you’re eighteen, does that mean you’re a third year?”

“Nope, I’m a first year, lying about my age, duh!”

“Oh. What are you studying?”

“Metaphysical magic, you know, wizard stuff.” Ragnhild took a steady lean forward, to fit her torso between the two front seats. She was not wearing a seatbelt. “But enough about me! What about you? You just married Gaim, out of all people!”

Gaim grunted, and gave Ranghild’s scaly forehead a light tap.

“Sit down, and don’t indirectly insult me to my face, will you? I’m still trying to figure out if that priest called me ugly or not.”

The dragon girl obliged, with a mischievous smirk.

“Yeah, but I’m still going to ask. Like, why now? Since when did you two start dating?”

“We didn’t.” Pentu curtly informed.

“You didn’t?”

“Nope, we didn’t.” Gaim agreed. He glanced sideways at Pentu, adding: “We should probably keep this secret so that the rest of the office won’t freak out.”

“Oh definitely. They have enough to worry about right now.”

In the back seat Ragnhild’s mouth was gaping like a goldfish’s.

“Am  _ I _ supposed to keep this secret?”

“If you can, please.” Pentu begged.

“Be tactical about it.” argued Gaim. “You can tell your friends in school, but you can’t tell the boys at the noodle shop ‘cus they might blow our cover, and then I’ll blow your kneecaps.”

Pentu startled at this casual threat of violence, but Ragnhild didn’t flinch. The girl just rolled her eyes.

“Okay,  _ fine _ . But I still want to know  _ why _ you two married.”

There was an awkward silence in the front seat.

“I think it’s Gaim’s choice if he wants to tell or not.”

“Well Pentu, I just decided I don’t want to tell her why I did it so, yeah, Ragnhild, you’re not getting jack squat.”

“What? Seriously?”

“Yes! I don’t want to tell you why I had to drastically change my life while being sober on a Monday!”

“Now I want to know even more!”

“They’re adult reasons! Secret adult reasons and that’s that!”

“Did you get her pregnant?”

Both of the adults in the car screamed “NO!” in perfect horrified unison. The teenager doubled over laughing. Luckily the car just rolled up to the school, five minutes to ten AM.

“Gaim, can you say why Pentu married you though?” Ragnhild asked, in a new angle.

“Nope, because I don’t know.” said Gaim, grumpy without looking anyone’s way. “I sure hope she will tell me, but not while you’re here kid.”

“I will, Gaim, I promise.”

“Ugh, I get it!” groaned Ranghild, moseying her way over to the door. “I’ll just go to school and be a normal teenager living a normal highschool life I guess! You two can stay in your weird secret office romance marriage thing.”

With her hand on the handle, Ragnhild however paused.

“Pentu, can’t you tell me why?”

“I’m afraid I don’t feel close enough to you yet.” answered the tiefling.

“Hmm…” Sharp teeth glinted in the young girl’s smile. “Okay, I’ll just have to become friends with you. I’ll see you soon, and take that as a threat! Bye!!”

There was a pause, accented by the car door slamming shut behind her. Both of the adults looked out over the school yard, and the sole student dashing across it. Perhaps it was the place, or the sight of the uniform in motion, but a sense of melancholy nostalgia permeated the car. That ‘normal highschool life’ beckoned in both of their memories. Perhaps living such stories were preferable to their odd adult ends.

“So…” Gaim tried. “You were saying?”

“I grew up with an obsessed stalker that I couldn’t get away from.” Pentu replied, clear as day, while she started the car again. She drove off, talking about her past as calmly as if it had been the weather. “He loved me, and still loves me, but it was naturally an unrequited love on his part. In order to get away from him, I reasoned and compromised until we settled on this odd bet. It feels strange to talk about it, since I’ve kept it secret for so long.”

Gaim had already been sitting with his arms crossed, but now he needed it. Goosebumps were rising, and it felt necessary to clasp his own arms tighter. Eyes on the road, just like her, he did nothing more than listen.

“My winning conditions were that I would get married before I turned twenty five. I don’t expect you to know, but that’s a mere month away by now… Hah, well, I just won, so I don’t have to complain anymore… Do you remember me telling my ex-boyfriend that he put me through hell by not wanting to marry me? Because that’s what it has been. You see, if I failed to find anyone to marry before my birthday, I would have to marry this stalker, and submit to his demands just like he has submit to mine ever since our teens.”

“Demands?” Gaim wondered.

“Oh, mine were reasonable, trust me. I could tell him to back off, warn him when he was being creepy, or generally have some leverage against his tries to court me. I don’t think I would have been able to date anyone else if I hadn’t had this bet to hold against him.”

The gith reached the point where he found himself nervously laughing.

“Whoa, what a nutcase.”

Pentu nodded. Gaim’s goosebumps shivered. He didn’t like Pentu’s apathetic acceptance of this strange reality she presented to him. Gaim ground his teeth.

“Well, tell me who, and I’ll beat him up for you.”

Now Pentu laughed. It sounded genuine, because she did find the thought of Gaim beating up Krev genuinely funny. But a small part of her heart settled to not ‘tell him who’, potentially ever.

“Don’t worry about it. Since I won, he has to stay off forever.”

The car rolled back into the parking spot in front of the office. Pentu turned off the ignition with a smile on her face. Sitting back, and just relaxing for a moment, she felt happy.

“I won.”

“But uh… What happens when we get divorced though?”

“What?”

Pentu turned to face Gaim. The gith was squirming slightly in his seat, obviously avoiding her gaze. Finally he settled with resting his upper body on the headboard. It hid his face from all view, facing only his own feet.

“Pentu, I don’t know. You said you’d marry me to help me with my debts, and you probably did it to protect the company from Shemeshka but… You heard Ragnhild. You married  _ me _ out of all people. Do you honestly think this is going to last?”

“I’ll make it last.”

The certainty in her voice startled Gaim. He jerked up just enough to look her way. The bright pupils inside those dark scleras pierced into his soul, again. This was his wife. The beautiful tiefling girl he crushed on was now his wife, and just looking into her eyes made his throat grow tense. Especially now, when she broke the eye contact to shyly fiddle with the controls between them.

“I don’t want a divorce, ever. Gaim, I know this is all very new, but I want to have an honest and serious marriage with you… The same way I compromised with my stalker, I’m willing to compromise with you. I will live with you, at least until all of those debts are paid. If we realise that we don’t mix well under one roof, we can move apart again. If there’s something you don’t like, tell me. If there’s something I don’t like, I’ll tell you. But whatever happens…” Finally Pentu’s voice shook. Fear was pushing at the narrative, and now it showed. Pentu bowed her head to her husband. “Please don’t ever ask for a divorce. The bet never considered such a thing would happen. If I stop being married I don’t know what he will do to me…”

Gaim’s hand pat her shoulder.

“Alright, I get it.”

She looked up, to find her husband blushing. The tears in her eyes stopped forming.

Gaim harked his throat. “If that’s the kind of ride we’re in for, then that’s it. I second that part about honesty, so uhh… Let’s get back inside and help Andi and Bifrost! They’ve waited long enough!”

The gith exited the car before her, which gave Pentu some time to dry her eyes. That happy sense of relief was rising again. She followed him inside, full of hope for the future.

Gaim had a certain sense of dread dampening his spirits. Shemeshka’s words echoed in his heart. She thought that he would  _ fail _ . He agreed that in regards to how perfect this seemed, he was bound to mess it up.

Gaim and Pentu stepped right back into a wild stream of phonecalls and emails. The team had a hellish Monday to finish, and they hardly got a chance to talk to each other. Wilford sent word that he would be on a crutch, but able to return to work against his doctor’s recommendations. All of the reservations for the viewing schedule of the apartment were filling up fast.

In the afternoon however, something new came rushing in thanks to their viral fame. A crystal dragon influencer by the name of Prisma contacted them, and asked to do a video on the apartment. Naturally she claimed to be interested in bidding on it as well. But the main takeaway was that with her team of expert videographers she would be able to make a virtual tour of the apartment for the curious masses. Bifrost took this project under his wing without any hesitation, and rushed off to get it started immediately.

One man down the rest of the office kept at it. Thankfully, by the time their office hours closed, there were only a few callers insisting on waiting. Andi and Pentu stayed put, motivated to get through another bit of overtime. 

Gaim excused himself, saying something had come up at his apartment. Andi took it as fact, because it was, and didn’t question it. She didn’t notice Pentu slipping Gaim her house keys before he left.

Fragmentally through text Pentu and Gaim discussed his moving out, and moving into her apartment. He was ready to start packing and then shuffling his belongings over to her place by hand. Moreover he explicitly wrote that he didn’t want her help. With such clear boundaries Pentu didn’t pry, but instructed him to leave all of his stuff in the living room. Both agreed that he would sleep on the couch until they got a second bed.

Pentu ordered ramen for two. She had to do this. Xigmund prepared both bowls with a flamboyantly happy flair. When finished with the to-go bag he put it on the counter between them and leaned closer.

“So… You want to date your emergency husband again sometime soon?”

“Sorry, I married today.”

“... Eh?”

“I’m married. That second ramen is for my husband.”

Xigmund nodded, smiling to keep all of the pain inside. “I see…”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. I just thought you were damn hungry!”

The red tiefling let out his devil laugh, and Pentu took the moment to snatch the bag and leave. She didn’t know this man, and now she would never be forced to either. It was none of her business to know if he was heartbroken or just disappointed. On the bright side, she avoided any follow up questions as to who this husband was.

On the train home Pentu felt as if she was in a daze. The interaction at the noodle shop had been another nail in the casket. She was no longer single, but a married woman. These abstract thoughts of self occupied her all the way home, as she walked in the late city dusk.

By her apartment complex she noticed her neighbour standing outside. The old mother had a broom in her hand, conspicuously turned with the head up instead of down. She looked more ready for a beating rather than any sweeping. When she noticed Pentu she hurried to wave her closer.

“Psst! There has been a strange man visiting your apartment several times today!”

“Uh, yes…?”

“I’ll have you know I thought he was a thief, but hear here… He has been carrying things inside. Loads of them! Boxes and bags, brought here by bike.”

“Miss-”

“I was about to call the cops, but now I’m just standing guard before he scares my children-”

“Miss, that’s my husband.”

At that moment, Pentu’s new identity felt right. When turning down Xigmund she had felt a bit of guilt. When thinking about it on her own she had felt embarrassed. But here, when straightening out a misunderstanding, Pentu felt empowered to call someone her spouse. She was married, and it felt great!

The neighbour however didn’t feel very empowered. The embarrassment shifted to her.

“Oh my… Since how long? I haven’t heard of this. I don’t think I have ever seen him before.”

“I think you have. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have ramen that’s getting soggy. Good night to you, miss.”

The ramen was, in fact, already soggy. Pentu knew it would be, since the way home from work took a while. Still she ate it with gratitude, and enjoyed every lukewarm, hearty, soft bite. She had apparently missed Gaim by just a couple of minutes, and he would be back later with another load of stuff.

“Your ramen will be soggy and cold.” she texted, out of concern.

“I’ll microwave it, hungover style.” was the simple reply.

Pentu smiled. When she had imagined marrying someone she had imagined a stranger. It would have been an alien man invading her space with alien wants and wishes. Gaim was no alien. Sharing her apartment would still be a nervous experience, but it didn’t seem scary. She was looking forward to getting to know her husband better.


	15. And They Were Roommates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gaim says farewell to his apartment. The couple's first morning together happens. It's a bit tough, isn't it? Work is hectic, but Wednesday comes and Kei makes another appearance in the story.

Gaim stood in the foyer. By the start of his escape from this apartment it had looked like usual. Now it was beyond compare, as if a bomb had gone off. The regular mess had become irregular, and looked worse. The eerie empty spaces from where his stuff had been looked odd. He took a swig from a nearly finished bottle he had found while cleaning. The coarse brandy brought him back.

This apartment had never been good. The aged walls had stains that never went away, and if you put your nose to the tatami mats you wished that you hadn't. The faucets leaked irregularly, the bathwater was seldom hot, and the neighbours were definitely not working jobs which paid any taxes. All in all, it was a home for the lowest of the low. Gaim had despite all its flaws been happy to live there. Considering his credit score, and how many new stains he had gifted his shabby apartment, he fit right in among the lowest of the low.

To think he even could get evicted from a place like this. It was all that blasted fox' fault. Gaim shook his head.

Normally the space had been grimy, ill lit and cramped with trash. That had been his fault, and not to be blamed on the space. Gaim tried to take some of it out whenever Kei came over, but it had never been enough. Bags, closed up and ready to go, had lined the walls. Everything of value hid from the garbage inside closed cabinets or high on shelves. The futon included in the room was never put aside. The faint smell of that mattress matched the smell of the tatami, with hints of puke.

He was leaving that futon, and all of his trash behind. Gaim straightened his back.

"You've been an asscrack, but you've been mine. Thanks for the hospitality." He drunkenly announced to the empty, dirty room. "You've been a good friend, but now is when I leave you behind. Accept this last offering for the house gods."

He turned the bottle upside down, and let the last bit pour out. The foyer got a considerable puddle of liquor. Yet another thing his bribed landlord would have to deal with tomorrow. Revenge tasted just like the brandy.

Gaim dropped the bottle after a moment of hesitation. If it broke it broke. It wasn't his problem any more, because he was starting anew. The vow in his heart hoped the bottle would break. It would be poetic to shatter the old when leaving it behind.

It didn't break. It cracked, but remained whole. Gaim took his last pair of bags and left the place. The stinking emptiness steeped in his smell, his liquor, his choices. The aura of the room watched the key get in through the mailbox. Thus, it exhaled and was no longer his.

Gaim left the bike he had unlawfully borrowed in the yard where he had found it, walking this last lap toward Pentu’s place. The starlit night was chilly for a summer evening. When he arrived at a place of warmth again his cheeks flushed at the difference in temperature. Pentu had already gone to bed.

The microwave was loud. Gaim felt hyper aware of everything he did. He didn’t turn on any lights, and it was only in the glow of the microwave that he found out she had put sheets on the couch already. The door to her bedroom was closed. Gaim stared at it while scarfing down his soggy ramen.

It still didn’t feel real. His pickle of a situation felt like some bad romance. When he sank down on the couch he half hoped, half expected, to wake up back under his own grimy, smokestained roof. This place was too clean and good for him. The slight discomfort of the couch however paradoxically comforted him.

Gaim woke up with a start to the sound of a door unlocking and opening. In an apartment complex like his, that was the worst of sounds. He lived alone, and did not take kindly to his shifty neighbours inviting themselves in-

In an attempt to get off his futon and spring into action, Gaim launched himself off the couch and fell on the floor. The field of filled paper bags took his fall, and made ample noise when they did.

Pentu stood frozen in shock, still holding the bathroom door. She clutched her folded up pyjamas close to her business shirt, wondering if she had done anything wrong. Gaim regained his bearings, sitting up and looking her way. A slog of exhaustion still weighed down his sleep deprived eyes.

“You okay?” she asked.

“Yeah, uh, sorry, I thought there was an intruder… I have lived alone for quite some time, hah…”

“Oh, yes, I see.”

“And then I thought I was still sleeping on a futon on the floor, but I didn’t find the floor when I tried to stand up, so uh, I fell.”

Pentu’s lips curled into a smile as she held back a giggle. Now Gaim’s sudden reaction and fall seemed perfectly reasonable, albeit funny.

Gaim nervously smiled back, and looked away. “Yeah, it might take some time to get used to living with a roommate.”

“Yes, a roommate.” Pentu said, heading to the kitchen. She put her pyjamas away on the counter while fixing her breakfast. “I think it’s best if we start at that level. Our circumstances have quite forced us to cohabitate, haven’t they?”

Gaim nodded, back on the couch. He stared at her. She looked just like she did at work, even if the surroundings were all wrong.

“Yep… No offense, but I don’t think I understand you’re my wife just yet.” he confessed.

A slight blush appeared on her cheeks.

“We’ll work on that, won’t we?” Pentu said, trying to be cheery. “For starters, can I make you anything for breakfast?”

“Uh, sorry, I don’t eat breakfast.”

“Oh… Okay.” The cheer faded, leaving only embarrassment on her face. “Well, I’m all finished in the bathroom, so I guess…”

“Yep, good call!” Gaim stood up. “Just gotta find my shit first.”

He got to work rummaging through his bags, while Pentu could face her meal prep alone. Her heart was beating, but that was beside the point. She had meditated yesterday, and at the base of her mind she knew she was still  _ shy _ about this whole deal. It’s okay to be shy about suddenly having a roommate, much less a husband. Gaim finally found the bag with the bounty of his old bathroom, hefting it up to both use and unpack.

“I, uhm.” Pentu called out when he passed. “I tried to move my things to one side, so please make yourself at home wherever there’s space in there.”

“Will do.” He stopped at the bathroom door, looking out over the apartment. There was an exhausted sigh. “I guess we’ll have to do something similar in all of these spaces to stow my stuff. When the fuck will we have time for that?”

“If we do a little each day after work I think we’ll manage.”

“Speaking of work, what time is it?” Gaim realised, stepping back out to catch a glimpse of the clock. The time it told made his jaw drop. “... Why is it so damn early?”

“I, uh, was nervous? And I couldn’t fall back asleep.” Pentu said. “I usually get up just about now.”

“That’s still early!” Gaim retorted.

“Then, uhm, it takes time to eat breakfast?”

“Ah, whatever! I’m taking a full on shower with all of this extra time.”

Out of her sight, Gaim crouched behind the door and hid his face in his hands. Out of his sight, Pentu crouched in the kitchen and pressed her face against her knees. Both newlyweds were flustered, and felt utterly awkward about their interactions. Somehow they’d get through this. On the other side, hopefully, they would get used to this. 

Both a blessing and a curse, work was so busy that neither had time to think about their secret. Wilford was back in the office, on crutches as promised, with a great cast on his leg. The clever man had asked for gray coverage of it, so that it matched his multitude of gray suits. Back under the guidance of their chief, the battle plan was executed as planned. Their prepared schedule fixed their shifts, either showing the apartment on site or managing the back from the office.

The video by Prisma the dragon influencer came up as early as Wednesday morning, despite having been filmed on Monday evening. Bifrost featured as the guide in the “I WANT TO MOVE HERE - HOUSE TOUR”, and found a sudden growth in followers himself. His handsome, charismatic guidance made many internet strangers swoon, as if the humorous flirts from Prisma wasn’t enough. 

However, this video became a great asset for the agency, since they could send this as a primer to anyone interested in the Dragon’s Den. If anything, it satiated the merely curious, and calmed the general populous who could  _ never _ afford the place themselves. Some even called in to cancel their booked slot on a viewing, which freed it for another client in the ever full queue.

Hosting those viewings was a ball, but not in the good way. It was a ball in the sense that one felt underdressed, and a like mere servant to the upper class who came to tour the place. The real estate agents had to collectively decide to not argue when a client booked for one slot wanted to bring two bodyguards into the place. Luckily with the size of the place, it wasn’t as noticeable that there always were a bit more people inside than planned. These clients were all filthy rich, from CEOs to celebrities, being of every possible species with the exception of the small size ones. The staff soon got jaded and quit raising their eyebrows when they met yet another exotic millionaire.

Overtime was still a fact. Bifrost and Wilford had to attend interviews. Andi and Pentu did calls and communication off the clock every day. Every agent except Wilford could host private tours in the odd hours for clients who paid the premium. A lot of them did. Gaim was the only one who didn’t get affected as much. The brunt of the accounting ran smoothly thanks to their preparation.

This made it easy, every time Wednesday came around. Kei still needed to be babysat, and Gaim had time to leave early as per usual. Nobody at the office noticed what wasn’t usual.

“... and then Knäck-Knack had prepared these pretty posters! And that’s where we’ll all get to put our teeth on display when they fall out.” Kei explained in a hurried excitement. “Gaim, can you make teeth fall out faster?”

“Not on you, I can’t.” Gaim said, ruffling the little deva’s hair. They were still on the train, riding their usual route. “But hey kid, there’s something I’ve got to tell you.”

“Hmm?”

“I’ve actually moved out from my apartment.”

“What? Really? Where do you live?”

“I live with Pentu now.”

“Master Pentu!” Kei straightened their back and stiffened their fluffy wings. Their brilliant smile did however not stay serious for long. “Hurray, I get to train with the baggie more!”

“Uh, yeah, about baggie…” Gaim scratched the back of his neck. “It’s kind of too messy around that thing to fight it right now. It’s all my stuff from my old place.”

Kei got a little upset, but didn’t quite know what to do with the emotion. Gaim steeled his spirit, and went in for the twist. It had been Pentu’s idea, and he just hoped it would work.

“But you can help me clean that up! I need help sorting through all of my stuff, so we can make a fun game out of it.”

“Oh! Yes! Like the garbage game!”

“... Kinda.”

“Find the smelliest garbage, so Gaim can throw it out!” the child sang, nostalgic about a quite morbid game Gaim hoped to never play again.

“Don’t tell Pentu about that game.”

“Why not?”

“It’s our secret.”

Pentu’s idea did work. As soon as Kei had gotten a hang of the rules they started industriously sorting through whatever they found. It put Gaim in a great mood. Clothes were put in one pile, stray books in another, kitchen tools in the kitchen, miscellaneous oddities in a corner and bottles right to Gaim. 

When he had been tearing through his old place he didn’t realise how many of the last category there were. In odd places he had found bottle after bottle of half finished drinks, and just immediately plucked them into the bag he was filling. Now they were all turning up.

“Ah, I’ve got to taste if it’s still good.” Gaim slyly bargained with both himself and Kei when they found the first one. Kei didn’t question it at all. After his sip Gaim nodded.

“Is it still good? Can I try?”

“No, but you can have a small glass of apple juice for finding it for me.” Gaim promised, waving a shot glass he had happened to unpack right that moment.

“Hahaha, yes! I love the small glass!”

This chance decision proved to be  _ bad. _ Gaim hadn’t expected so many bottles to turn up. There was a lesser crystalline carnival forming by one of the walls, where they were all put after his mandatory taste test. The moment he was starting to get tipsy Gaim honestly wanted to stop. It was bad to be buzzed around Kei. But according to the challenge, Gaim  _ had _ to take a sip in order for Kei to get apple juice.

Furthermore, the shots of sugar speeded up Kei. Whenever Gaim left the room to take care of the laundry, because yes, all of his clothes needed to be laundered, Kei broke something. It was amazing, in a sense... Without a fail, something always broke. Most of the time it was just a bag, which was a mess rather than a big deal, but once a small glass shattered. That took a toll on the sorting process. 

Gaim’s good mood was receding, overwhelmed by stress and alcoholic liquid fear. Pentu was to come home soon, right? What would she think? Gaim accepted a taste of yet another bottle. It held taste of guilt. Like clockwork his phone buzzed with a text from her.

“I’ll be shopping on the way home. What does Kei want to eat?”

Gaim looked at the small angel pouring themselves a shot of apple juice. The excitement in their eyes was so pure. He felt like he had created a monster.

“Hey, what do you want to eat tonight?”

“Cuuup-ramen!” Kei announced before slamming their juice. After taking the shot they exhaled like a happy old man.

Gaim processed the request for a moment. It didn’t feel right. He cleared his throat and clarified:

“Uhm, it’s Pentu who will be cooking. You don’t have to eat Gaim’s special today.”

Slight shock turned into sparkling excitement for Kei.

“Then I want croquettes! Croquettes with ketchup!”

Gaim nodded and tapped away at his phone. At the end of the order he tacked on an insecure “if that’s alright.”

“Don’t worry! My hobby is cooking after all. I’m excited to take some time to do it properly.” came her response.

Gaim squinted and cringed. When he was in charge Kei wanted cup noodles, but when Pentu was in charge they got a tricky home cooked dish. He was so out of his league in this field that he felt silly. His phone buzzed again.

“It might take quite long to make them however. Please take a break and have some sandwiches as a snack so that you don’t get too hungry before then.”

Kei bounced in their seat as Gaim gave them their plate. A small hand still clamped the shot glass, and held it forward towards the gith at-home-waiter.

“Can I have some more juice? In the small glass?”

Gaim found no reason to argue, and casually poured it up. To both of their surprise, the carton ran empty. The final little drops struggled to fill the shot to the brim. Kei let out a little gasp. Gaim finally cracked a smile. He crouched to be on Kei’s level.

“Well Kei, it seems we’ve run dry. This means I’m not allowed to taste more bottles, right?”

“No… That’s not fair. My juice is out.”

“Eeexactly.” Gaim reached out and pat the child’s back. “No more drinking for us, except water. Now dig in, we can get back to work after we’ve had our break.”

Pentu furrowed her eyebrows at the text “Out of AJ”, and it took a moment for her to decode it. Then her eyebrows furrowed more, because as far as she remembered that carton had been over half full.

Kei came out of the bathroom with a yawn. The sugar was crashing down in their little system, now that it was all out. Gaim led them into the privacy of Pentu’s bedroom and tucked them in for a nap in her bed. Kei went out like a light under their gloria’s soft glow.

It was here that Gaim got a moment to look around. The space was pristine. Pentu’s room didn’t show anything that could be incriminating of any flaws. A stray thought wondered if she had stuffed everything into her closets to hide it from him. But that was when he noticed the calendar.

The current month of August had been crossed off halfway. The systematic markings ended on their wedding day. Gaim carefully lifted the page to see the next month. Only one day was marked with the big number 25. So that was her birthday. He took note of it. He took the calendar off the wall. He flipped backwards, month by month. The x markings started after a day completely filled in with ink. It probably marked the day her last relationship ended. Gaim flipped forward to the month after that. This one was just x after x on every single day. Deep dark crosses covered these testaments of time. Time potentially spent in pain. Going through hell, wasn’t it?

Gaim had a pit in his stomach long after he hung the accursed calendar back where it belonged.

Pentu came home with groceries for more than just croquettes. She seemed happy and excited.

“Where’s Kei?”

“They’re taking a nap in your room. I hope that’s fine.”

“That’s great. They probably sleep better in there without hearing us out here. It looks like you’ve come a long way!”

“Yeah, Kei has been a great help actually… Your idea worked.”

Gaim could not bring himself to mention what he had seen. It felt taboo, and it’s not like she would tell him anything new. He knew, even if he felt he didn’t. The bet was won, and he ought not worry about it.

Kei gasped, wide awake in wonder. They pointed their fork at the croquette, overcome with joy.

“It’s a little bear!”

“Yes, it’s a bear.” Pentu laughed. She had taken time to both give the croquettes ears in their shape, and faces with ketchup. “I wanted to make cats, but round ears fried better.”

“I love them” Kei said. “Can I really eat them?”

“Yep.” Gaim replied, stabbing one of his bears with confidence. It was a swift process to slice the face in half. “They’re gonna taste real good, don’t you worry.”

Kei looked at the bear-massacre with wide eyes. Something processed in their innocent mind. Then it clicked, and Kei picked up their own knife.

“I’m going to eat the ears first!”

Gaim came back from dropping off Kei later that night. Pentu was sitting by the kitchen table with a teacup, already in her pyjamas. They nodded at each other, before shyly trying out an exchange of “I’m home” and “Welcome back” together. Neither as coworkers, roommates, or wedded spouses did they do a very good job. Gaim sat down with her, having another glass of water before bed. He didn’t think Pentu had noticed he had been drunk earlier…

He was roused from his worries by Pentu blushing. The acute fact that he found her cute sparked in his body. Hours and days had passed without a fit of infatuation, but now it all came back. His throat dried up, and he could not ask what was up at all. Pentu spoke first.

“I’m really happy I got to cook today.”

“Uh-huh.”

“I haven’t really had time for that recently, due to all the dating I’ve done… I was looking for a husband, of course.”

“I get that.”

“In hindsight I can’t believe how much money I must have spent on restaurants. It feels embarrassing.” She shook her head, but then faced him with confidence. “I look forward to cooking more for both of us. It will save us a lot of money, so that we can pay your debts.”

This finally snapped Gaim out of his tongue-tied state. He harked his throat, and leaned on the table.

“Yeah, about that… I don’t know how to tell you how much there is… Like, I’m in a lot of debt.” he said, embarrassed in turn. “You don’t even know how bad it is, and I don’t even know where to start.”

Pentu blinked.

“Gaim, you’re an accountant.”

“... Yeah?”

“Just treat it like work and present a financial report to me when you’re ready.”

“Oh… Right.”

“We’ll write out a budget and payment plan from that, I suppose.” She took a sip of her tea. “I know it might be scary, but I think we’ll manage. You’ve managed so far, after all.”

Gaim bowed at the table. His hands and forehead were flat on the surface in an instant. Pentu flinched, shocked at the shift.

“Thank you for marrying me.” said Gaim meekly. “You don’t know how much this means.”

A swell of feelings arose in Pentu's chest. His gratitude towards her awakened more gratitude towards him. She bowed too, but not as deeply.

“Thank you, Gaim. This means a lot to me too.”

Face hidden, the gith man opened his mouth. He wanted to confess that he liked her. Nothing came of it. She didn’t notice. He fell asleep on her couch that night feeling like a goddamn idiot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Birthday to SwediCandy! This Friday happens to be her birthday, so I'm dedicating this chapter to her.
> 
> I also want to offer all readers a look at her art Instagram, where you can find drawings of the characters in this fanfiction. Check it out: https://instagram.com/swedidraws


	16. Tits Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The real estate agents talk about stress management. Living together is stressing the newlyweds out. Gaim is the one who snaps. Pentu and him have their first big fight. The title of the chapter becomes relevant.

“... And that’s why you all ought to relax some more. We don’t need to provide perfect service for everyone, because we’ve already secured a large cast of reliable bidders, and any more to that pool is just extra security.”

Wilford sternly looked out over the group. Gaim, Pentu and Andi dutifully nodded. Bifrost couldn’t nod. His stress had sprained his neck, and he had a rudimentary cast on it to not twist it further. The poor centaur could barely smile properly, since his face was all tired out after literal days of constant pearly whites.

The boss shook his head. “The company will cover for your chiropractor Bifrost.”

“Thank you.”

“And the rest of you… Tell me something you’ll do tonight in order to relax?”

“Sleep.” sighed Andi.

“Fold laundry.” Gaim said, honestly. Embarrassed by this ‘uncharacteristic’ response he added on: “It’s been piling up, and I finally washed a whole bunch.

Wilford seemed to approve in his grunts and nods.

“I’ll be baking.” Pentu said. Her eyes resisted a nervous glance at Gaim before she went in for her planned strike. “I often cook to relax, but it’s been a little unmotivating since I started living alone…”

Her trailing speech left everyone waiting for more.

“So I was wondering if I could cook lunchboxes for the rest of you at the office? It would be fun for me, and one meal less for you to worry about.”

“You mean like a lunchbox service? We’ll pay you for the ingredients and a little for your time?” Andi asked.

“Exactly. My goal is to be cheaper than regular lunch rates, naturally.”

There was hesitation in Andi’s eyes.

“I can match any and all dietary restrictions or wishes too” promised Pentu.

“Alright, I’ll bite.” Andi finally said. “I’ll send you a list later.”

Gaim had been nervously silent all throughout this, but he finally raised his hand.

“I want in too. Cheap grub will do me good.”

“What about you Bifrost?” Pentu asked, hurrying to divert the attention from Gaim.

“I’ll abstain.” said the centaur apologetically. “It’s quite particular to feed a centaur, so I’d rather take care of that myself.”

“Of course.” she replied, before shooting a shy glance at Wilford. “And you boss?”

Wilford smiled.

“I’ll taste your cooking when the others have given it a good review. I’m not too bad of a chef myself, I’ll have you know.”

Everyone smiled, even Bifrost with his hurting jowls. This emergency meeting about stress management had succeeded in lifting everyone’s spirits. If anything it had been the first time since the stress started that they had talked about something other than the Dragon’s Den. Mental health talks matters. Pentu’s little detour about lunchboxes were just the cherry on top.

But for Pentu and Gaim this was yet another weight taken off their shoulders. Now they had a believable cover as to why they brought the same food to lunch. Nobody knew that they lived together, and much less that they were married! It might be a complicated dance, but for now they were intent on keeping up the charade a bit longer.

The heart of their matters laid where they didn’t keep up any charade. It was during those awkward home hours that Pentu and Gaim found ambient stress. Like two cats who hadn’t figured out the territory yet they painstakingly  _ happened _ to avoid each other.

Like, it is not like Pentu meant to leave work all that much later than Gaim? And oh, he’s already home and watching tv. Pentu might as well do something in her room, as to not disturb his relaxation. When Pentu’s in the kitchen cooking, Gaim just so happens to take a walk. Dinner is had in light, casual pleasantry. Gaim washes up. Pentu packs the lunchboxes. In the kitchen they are standing back to back but not saying anything.

Gaim could take this. He kept telling himself that he could take this. But the second week of their marriage he couldn’t. Frustrated fury was building up inside of him. There was one routine happening that always disturbed him the most, and it blew his fuse.

“Pentu, why do you change your clothes in the bathroom and not in your room?”

The tiefling stopped, as if she had been caught stealing. Gaim sat in the couch, arms crossed, but attention turned her way. The TV was off. She slowly put her clothes on the kitchen counter, as if that would make the question go away. It didn’t. Gaim kept looking at her, waiting for an answer.

“... It has a lock.” She finally said.

Even if the answer had been expected Gaim still took it as an insult.

“Why? Do I ever just walk into your room?” he said, irritation more plain this time around.

“No, you don’t.” Pentu thought about it. “I don’t think you’re ever in my room, actually.”

“See? So why don’t you change in there.” Gaim huffed. “This bathroom bullshit makes me tense, as if you don’t trust me..”

“I’m not! I’m just…” She took a sharp breath. “I want to be able to lock the door. That’s all.”

Gaim rubbed his forehead. It was happening again, and he hated it. Pentu was emanating that strong kind of fear that he just couldn’t block out… Especially now, since he was practically sober. That line of thought made him swerve the conversation off in a new path.

“Okay, alright, but can we talk about this? Because you do agree that this situation is tense? Your behaviour is making me tense, and it’s just messing with whatever feeling you’re supposed to feel in your home.”

“Sure.” Pentu fiddled with the hem of her pyjama shirt. “You live here after all...”

“Yes! I do, but I am not living like I used to. Most importantly, I am practically sober!”

The tiefling woman visibly doubted him. Her eyes looked to the wall of bottles, which had significantly grown fewer over the week. Ever since Kei found them they had been organised from emptiest to fullest, so that Gaim could finish them up efficiently. Now there were only the small but strong cavalcade of half empty bottles left. Gaim noticed her staring, and let out a chuckle.

“What? Do you think I’ve been drinking a lot?”

“No, it has been quite moderate… A little each day and so on.”

“Exactly! I have been surviving on the bare minimum, and it’s not cutting it.” Gaim recrossed his arms. “I drink as little as possible because I’m sure you’ll chew me out if you spot me getting sloshed.”

Pentu furrowed her brow. “I… Might?”

Gaim huffed once more, and didn’t respond to it. His whole posture however spelled out ‘I told you so’ since his premonition  _ might _ have been right.

“Gaim, is there something you’re not telling me?”

“Yeah, just like you’re not telling me why you’ve got to lock the door whenever you change.”

That struck a chord, and the tension in the room reached new heights. Pentu looked down, ashamed like a child. She was carefully weighing which words to use. She would rather say nothing, but he was putting her on the spot. Gaim was having a light headache, from Pentu’s ambient thoughts and not his.

“I…” She started. “I had troubles with my stalker during my teens. He would deliberately walk in on me changing.”

“At home?”

“Yes. I’ve been changing in bathrooms ever since.”

“No, sorry, he would walk in on you at home?” Gaim repeated in disbelief.

“He lived with us sometimes.” Pentu squeezed out. It was much more than she wanted to admit.

“But he was your stalker!”

“It was on my parents' graces. They didn’t know, and I hid it from them.”

Gaim thought for a moment he started to understand why Pentu’s thoughts on the matter were so audible. The trauma was strong, and it made her feelings louder. Even if she projected those bad vibes directly into his skull, he couldn’t wrap his head around it.

“... Did some creepy old man seriously walk in on you changing, and you didn’t tell your parents?”

“He was my age!” Pentu protested, but regret it immediately. She covered her face and hurried to add: “I don’t want to talk about him, it’s just the way it is.”

Gaim retreated, sighed, regret his pushing, but not without frustration that he had failed. All he had done was make Pentu upset. He was still upset. Gaim threw his hands up.

“But if it’s the way it is for you, do I have to be included in the whole damn circus?”

“What?”

“I’ve also been changing in the bathroom because you’ve been doing it!”

“Oh…” Pentu was shaken out of her initial shame into fresh embarrassment. “I didn’t notice.”

“Really? Because obviously I’m no good at it. I keep forgetting shit and need to go several times, and I freaking hate it.” Gaims started to ramble. The moment he let his feelings out he realised how truly mad this issue made him. “Like, I’m in my own home “supposedly”, but I can’t even take my shirt off at my own leisure!”

“Do you wa-”

“YES I want to take my shirt off whenever I want!”

He did it to prove a point. He did it because he was mad. He did it because if he never acted on impulse and did something rash he would never get anywhere with his wife. He pulled his shirt off. Gaim pulled his shirt off in front of his crush and wife. Gaim got half naked because at the time it seemed like a good idea. At the time he probably didn’t think about how his body looked.

Pentu’s eyes went wide. Of course she saw everything Gaim didn’t think about. She could not look away, because there was no point. They were already married. But Gaim’s slouched posture and loose shirts had hidden the truth. The man was muscular, but littered with scars. Cuts streaked across the yellow skin. Stabs punctuated select points. Some burn- fissure of discoloration splashed his hip, continuing under the hem of his pants. The scars were many, and absolutely frightening.

But not as frightening as the implications. Gaim was half naked! She was seeing her husband naked! Halfway!

Gaim grunted, pressing a hand to his temple.

“Don’t you dare lie to me Pentu! I can  _ sense _ that you’re scared of me!” he accused.

“Whu- Wha-... I am?” She asked, blush rising.

“You are! Ever heard of Gith being able to read minds? I’m not particularly reading as much as you’re blasting your fear into my senses. You’re scared shitless!”

She held her tongue. It was dry. Her heart was racing. Gaim got up and walked over to snatch one of the bottles by the wall. He uncorked it and took a hearty swig.

“I’m not supposed to hear shit unless I try to, but I do. Alcohol is my self medication, and let me tell you this…” His accusatory finger was once again pointing her way, weighed down by the crystal bottle. “Unless you  _ let me get drunk _ , you’ll have a much unhappier gith on your hands. My own thoughts are enough, and I don’t want to bother with yours when I’m supposed to  _ rest _ .”

Pentu finally caved in to her instinct of running and hiding, crouching behind the counter. She covered her face, but still saw Gaim’s body clear as day on her eyelids.

“Fine! Fine! I promise I’ll let you drink, just please put your shirt back on!”

Gaim smirked. He was still mad.

“What? I can still hear you being afraid of me-”

“I’m not afraid of you! I’m afraid of sex!” Pentu confessed in horror, more honest with herself than she had ever been. “I’m still a virgin!”

There was a beat. The apartment stood still.

“I’ve been saving myself until marriage, and it has been so easy.” Pentu continued, the lump in her throat audibly thick. “Whenever anyone made a pass on me I could reject them because of my personal choice but… But now I’m married! I’m married to you! I’m not supposed to deny you if you want to f-fuck! If either of us get undressed it might imply it’s time to… No, I’m scared of this. I thought I was ready but I’m not!”

Gaim had taken a seat on the couch. The good thing about her hiding is that she couldn’t see the despair that overcame him. All she heard was a bitter mumbled “Ah shit… Fuck…” and so on. More mouthfuls of alcohol distracted him from the pain. The bitter aftertaste reminded him that this was fucked up. The strong kick of the spirit kicked his conscience, since he had fucked up.

“Oy, Pentu…” he said, softly for once. “I’m not trying to fuck.”

There was a single sniffle from the kitchen.

“I’m trying to talk… Talk about who I am and what I need.” He pressed at both of his temples. “I got mad. I’m frustrated. I… I want to like you, and I want this marriage to be good for both of us.”

Way to avoid the fact that he  _ liked her _ , present tense. It didn’t matter.

“I don’t want to be the scumbag husband who expects sex, alright? It’s kind of fucked up that you sort of expect me to be one, for that matter. If you’re not ready, or not willing…” He took a pause. “That would be rape, you know?”

Two adults sat in two spots, sharing thoughts of one heavy subject. Gaim thought about it in wisdom, uncomfortable because he knew it so well. Pentu thought about it in revelation, fitting all the loose pieces she had collected over the course of her asexual life into place. Neither of the spouses could see each other. Pentu’s thoughts had quieted down. Gaim took another swig of alcohol.

“No one told me that.” Pentu said.

“Did you ever ask?”

“No. I’ve been avoiding the subject by waiting, I’d guess…” She took a short sigh. “Sex is a taboo subject.”

“Depends on your company…” Gaim remarked bitterly.

“Why do you have all of those scars?”

The gith chuckled. Pentu felt curiosity egg at her hard. She heard Gaim stand up and walk over. He appeared above her, leaning over the countertop. Their eyes met. Gaim was smiling.

“I’ll tell you if you’re willing to look at them. Come on out and face me. Just trust me that there’s no funny business going on.”

It became a special evening. In order to make it feel more casual Gaim suggested Pentu brew her evening cup of tea. Nobody sane ever gets sexual with hot tea around (AN: Prove me wrong). Gaim kept walking around with his shirt off, and in due time as they messed about in the kitchen Pentu found herself getting used to this. It was kind of like being on a beach, except she was at home.

Settled into the couch, Gaim opened it up bluntly.

“I used to do a lot of gang fighting in my teens.”

“Why?” Pentu asked after a moment of shock.

“It was fun, and all my friends were doing it.” Gaim nonchalantly answered. He raised his arms and started trailing scar by scar. “This here was my first lasting scar, done by a girl who was faster than me for a moment. She sliced quite deep, but my gang still won in the end. These three here were done by an edgy guy who had a pair of tiger claws, not literally, the kind of brass knuckles with three knives attached to them. That’s why they’re perfectly linear to each other. I actually got a little pissed when this knife here stabbed me in the lung. It’s not that the near death experience made it bad, but the fact that he messed with the beauty of the three previous. Then if you take a gander at my back here? Yep, fell off a motorcycle and my leather jacket hiked up just this much. The slices back there I don’t remember the stories of as well, since I obviously couldn’t see who did what and where. Back here on my shoulder? Sparring gone wrong. I was supposed to show a guy some moves, but essentially stabbed myself on his knife. He quit, but I didn’t.”

After rattling off all of these he took a look at the rest of his arms. The strips of old pain here were much too irregular to imitate self harm. They were all too many to remember. He had accepted them as part of him. Gaim shook his head. He turned his gaze up to see the reaction of his wife properly.

Pentu was staring, respectfully, while also clenching her teacup so close that her knuckles turned pale. Gaim smirked.

“See, it’s not that fun, is it?”

“What?” she asked, snapped out of her horrified trance.

“Whenever you talk about that stalker you try and do it in such a casual fashion. I mimicked that for this little show.”

Pentu took a sip of tea.

“It’s good for coping, isn’t it?”

“Perhaps.”

“What about the burn scar on your hip?”

“Plain boiling water. I was at the wrong place at the wrong time.” He replied curtly.

“I see…” Pentu drank again. “I was imagining some actual acid torture.”

“Pfffsshhgghh!” Gaim wheezed, facepalming for a moment. “That’s an active imagination. But no, I was never in that much shit.”

“Gang fights still sound bad.”

“Nah, the worst part was all of the hospital bills.” Gaim faced her head on again. “They’re the brunt of why I’m in so much debt. There were a lot of people willing to save my life on several occasions, but none of them did it for free. I was supposed to pay them back… In all honesty it was an invitation to do bigger crimes with bigger payoffs, but I was never in it for the money.”

Pentu studied her husband with a tilt to her head.

“... Then why?”

“It was fun. All my friends were doing it.” Gaim repeated. 

Part of a broken record cranked on deep in his eyes, but the lie still stood strong enough for himself to believe it. Pentu could tell that there was no use questioning it. She lowered her gaze, thinking deeply for a short while.

“You should have told me about the self medication earlier.”

“I thought that you wouldn’t believe me.”

Pentu nodded. “I ought to believe you. You’re my husband. I married you, as you are.”

“No, in all honesty you married me blind, Pentu.” Gaim said. “You didn’t even know why I was in debt, or what I looked like naked.”

Pentu blushed. Her knuckles went pale again around her cup.

“... Neither did you.” she said. She heard herself say it, and hurried to add: “You married me blind too! You didn’t know about my past, my stalker or the bet.”

Gaim laughed a little. There was no mockery as far as she heard. No, she heard nervousness. Kinship and trust blossomed in her gut. They were in this together.

In truth Gaim felt similarly. His problem was that he was nervous out of obligation. Come on, just say it. Fucking get your spirit up and just-

“I like you, Gaim.”

Gaim faced her in shock. Had she just...? No. Her smile was warm, but not loving. No, she didn’t mean it that way. She nervously averted her gaze now that he was staring at her.

“It’s good that we’re able to fight with each other. I feel closer to you now, and I think I understand you better. Let’s adjust our budget to make room for some alcohol, since it’s that important to you…” She trailed off, hesitating slightly. “And thank you for saying that thing about rape. I hadn’t really thought of it that way… Thank you.”

“Are you thanking me for not raping you?”

“In essence, I guess.”

Gaim groaned, and doubled over the table. “Maaan, your standards are low.”

Pentu laughed. He loved that sound, because it was so damn rare. His heart skipped a beat.

“I like you too, Pentu.”

Gaim regret that he didn’t raise his head. The poor man would lie awake and wonder what her expression had been when she heard him say that. Could she tell from the sap and bleed in his voice that he meant it? Had she realised that he meant like-like and not just like? Was there even a fair chance, since she hadn’t seen his blush and earnest nerves when he said it? He didn’t know, and it plagued him long into the night.

Pentu was plagued too, but by a different kind of anguish. She was plagued by hope. Did she really have a chance to make Gaim fall in love with her? Was she falling in love in return? She didn’t know, and honestly didn’t want to risk getting excited. If it turned out they would just be married accomplices she didn’t know if she could hide the fact that it broke her heart. Such thoughts kept her awake, even if she wasn’t even in love with him yet... Right?


	17. One Question

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tension has risen. Gaim suggests they talk about stuff. Pentu settles their embarrassment with a compromise. Work is progressing. Gaim pays off a debt. The loanshark says mean things. At home Gaim helps Pentu answer the phone, despite a state of meatballs.

There had been change after that fateful fight. Something had been set in motion, as if it wasn’t already rolling before. Now there was a noticeable rumble of tension. Gaim noticed it, but that was nothing new. Pentu noticed it, and that was what was truly remarkable.

To be fair, it’s not hard to notice Gaim walking around shirtless. He would come out of the bath, hot and steamy with a towel around his neck. Thankfully he always wore pants, proper pants, even if the edge of his boxer’s waistband sometimes poked up. Pentu noticed that. She noticed it clearly. She thought she was getting used to seeing his scarred, lithe torso naked, but then he entered the kitchen and passed by her a little closer. Once again Pentu’s heart was rushing, belting, beating, screaming.

Gaim enjoyed his reinstated living standard so much. The alcohol, which was what he always had to go get in the kitchen, even tasted better here than when he drank in his old apartment. Pentu had insisted on some level of decency and organization, and that was probably doing the trick. Each bottle had to be marked when it was opened, and then estimated for how long it ought to last. That way Gaim could see that a brandy was not supposed to be empty until Thursday. Oh, and he used a glass now. It was downright fancy to sit there sipping from a glass instead of straight drinking from the bottle.

“Hey Pentu…”

They were on their way out of the apartment, morning, off to work. Their conversation was usually very light in the early hours, so this drawl of a cautious question immediately put her guard up.

“What?”

“What if I think we should talk about sex?”

She blinked, missing her shoe that she was trying to put on.

“You mean… Having it?” she asked, fearing the worst.

“No just… About it. Not us, necessarily!” Gaim retorted, blush rising. “Ah shit, I’m already getting embarrassed.”

“That makes two of us!” Pentu agreed, close to a falsetto. “So… How about we don’t?”

Gaim stood up, nice and proper into his own loafers. He squinted down at her, red around the cheeks but certain in his stance.

“Just avoid the whole subject like you have done so far?”

“Yes?”

“Pentu, someday you’ll have to face it.” he said. It sounded like both a promise and a threat to her innocent ears. Innocent enough, Gaim looked away as he added: “You seem pretty traumatised about it already… Like, if you’ve never climbed a tree, shouldn’t you talk about climbing trees before attempting it and breaking your neck?”

Pentu stared up in disbelief and horror. “... I can break my neck?”

“NO! Fff-shit!” Gaim gnashed his teeth and retreated, heading for the door. “Sorry, this went bad, I’ll see you at the station.”

The fresh air outside did little to clear his guilt. It was so hard to talk about this without painting himself like a horny perpetrator, about to ruin her sense of self. He looked properly furious as he passed the downstairs neighbour. The old lady observed his every move, sweeping her porch in the pedantic way she liked to keep it clean. Her silent theorizing was interrupted by the slamming of a door above, rattling of keys, to the clacking of heels hurrying down the metal staircase. Pentu caught up with her husband right as they exited hearing distance from the woman. Gripping her broom she silently cursed.

“One question per day.” Pentu said, slightly out of breath.

“What now?”

“We can ask one question per day. That way we take it slow, and don’t get as embarrassed.”

Gaim’s heart found a blazing ray of hope. The enormous wall of embarrassment he had failed to leap over was now smashed into small bite size pieces. He nodded, made a sound of agreement, and kept walking. The way to the station was long enough to say something more. Still, they needed some silence for the ice to settle, so that they could break it again.

“First question…” Gaim tried, slowly.

“We’re in public.”

“I know, but this one’s easy.” he promised. “Did you attend sex-ed in school?”

Pentu seemed relieved. She nodded and said:

“Of course. I know exactly how it’s supposed to happen. My family isn’t that crazy.”

Gaim’s eyes went wide open, while his mouth went clean shut. He had to suck in his lips to handle how absolutely hard it felt to  _ not ask another question. _ What about her family? Should he ask that tomorrow? Would he handle waiting that long?

“So… Gaim.” Pentu started. “Are you a virgin?”

“As far from it as you can be.” Gaim answered with bitter confidence. Then he smirked, and leaned forward to glance up at her face. “But isn’t that worse than my question? I thought we were in public?”

The sputtering embarrassment and denial lasted so long that they had to sit in separate train cars on their way to work. Some precious time alone was needed to cool down from the other’s presence. Pentu hugged the big bag loaded with three bento boxes, wistfully looking out the window. Gaim took a nap, looking dead drunk despite it being before 8 in the morning.

The Found Dragon Real Estate crew was nearing their goal. There was a light at the end of the tunnel. Their hellish weeks of showing the Dragon’s Den had passed. 

Pentu attended her first consultation with "regular customers", and almost forgot how to be a "normal" real estate agent. It was a couple looking for cohabitation. They were very in love, and didn't mind Pentu stumbling over words and misreading her computer. It just gave them more time to look into each other’s eyes and giggle. After the meeting another realisation struck our tiefling; she wasn't jealous! She also had someone to live with now! Gaim was her husband, and while they weren't in love… no, she had best not fuel those hopes.

Gaim on the other hand was desperately trying to put any kind of fuel on the fire of his hopes and dreams. Confess, say you like her, start properly dating your damn wife, just do it! These thoughts would occupy his every waking hour, if he didn’t have other issues to care about.

"And that should be it. You won't hear from me again." Gaim said, staring down the loan shark.

The bulbous anthropomorphic frog, apple shaped in both stature and spirit, slimmed their sour eyes at Gaim. Three small fingers gripped the plastic bag filled with cash. The peek inside made those eyes slim even more.

With a thud the cash counting machine was put on the table. The elven assistant started loading the bills in, every now and then handing the frog a bill to check for forgery.

"Didn't expect you to pay up like this." Remarked the guttural amphibian voice.

"Yeah, well I got tired of being your little paypig with the interest." Gaim replied.

"That makes this your final cut of pork then." The frog said back, their stiff lips curling to the barest of smiles. None of the bills were false. "Not that it matters much to us. This was a small loan."

Inside of his pocket, Gaim tightened his fist. It had been an insurmountable amount for him. From day one he had never dreamed of paying this back, especially since he had bigger loans to worry about. The interest had been sadistically rough, and always crippled his attempts to get financial standing. The only worse thing would be the literal crippling of kneecaps if they ever got tired of him begging. He remembered begging. He remembered crawling in the mud in front of this ugly frog, the size of a damn football.

And then they dismiss his pain by calling it a small loan. Gaim said nothing. The money counting machine chugged on.

"So, where did you get the money?" Asked the loan shark, making passive aggressive small talk. "Rob a bank? Win the lottery?"

"It's my wife's savings."

"Ah, score a woman! That's like the lottery and robbery all at once. Is she cute?"

"Adorable."

The frog chuckled. Gaim stood silent once again. Both of them glanced over to the elf at the machine, where the bag was nearly empty. The numbers counted up, up, and stopped. Exactly at the worth of his debt. The mobsters were satisfied and merrily sent Gaim on his way.

All but merry Gaim crossed a playground just to kick sand into the air. Angry grunts and swears were acted out in that somewhat loony public privacy. At least he wasn’t doing any real property damage.

“I’m home!” By now they had practiced this enough for his voice to ring out with confidence.

“Welcome back!” Came Pentu’s voice, a little shakier, from the kitchen. “How did it go?”

“It’s over and done with.” Gaim said, slipping out of his shoes and making a beeline for the couch. He was so ready to just lay down and- Oh. He stopped by a bureau, alerted by a buzzing. “Your phone’s ringing.”

Pentu sputtered in surprise, and when he turned his head her way he understood why. She was wrist deep in ground beef, making meatballs or meatloaf or whatever, right in the messiest mixing stage. There was poignant panic as she struggled to free her hands of the fatty flesh-butter before hurrying to wash them.

Gaim couldn’t stand just watching that. He picked up the phone and answered.

Pentu was surprised to feel her phone pressed to her ear. Gaim was next to her, at an arm’s length, which was still close according to their standards. More than anything his fingers brushed her head.

“Hello?” called the caller on the other side.

“Hi! Sorry, I’ll be with you in just a minute, sorry.” Pentu said. The warm water by her hands just didn’t scrub fast enough. “To whom might I be speaking?”

Gaim grinned, suppressing a giggle.

“It’s Therese, from Fateful Connections Marriage Agency. We haven’t heard from you in a while, Miss Pentu. Are you doing well?”

“Yep! Yes. I’m doing great.” Pentu could be doing better. In an attempt to free herself, or no, rather to free Gaim, she brought her shoulder up to squeeze the phone in a handsfree grip. Gaim’s hand got caught. They both struggled for a little bit to get the hand out while keeping the phone in place.

“That’s wonderful to hear!” cheered the woman. “I’m glad you’re able to take our call. It is a bit rough to run a business which mostly operates at evenings and afternoons, and most are usually busy.”

“No, no I’m not busy at all!” lied Pentu, finally properly installed as the holder of the phone. She looked to Gaim in gratitude, but got no eye contact as he moseyed out of the kitchen and crashed on the sofa. “Uhm, may I ask why you called?”

“Yes, certainly. While you haven’t attended many meet and greets recently, I was actually calling to ask if our company may be of service. I do know that you are in contact with multiple marriage agencies, but I have a surprise for you!” Therese took a small pause for dramatic effect. “I think we’ve found your future husband!”

“What?”

“A gentleman has gotten in contact with our company, and he is very suitable in regards to the criteria you asked for in a husband. According to our calculations you’re an 80% match! I can send his profile over in just a moment, but what’s even better, he’s looking to marry very soon, just like you!”

Pentu was stunned. Her hands were finally cleansed enough to take hold of the phone and straighten her spine. Was she hearing this correctly?

“Hello? Miss Pentu? You there?”

“I’m sorry.” was the first thing that came to mind.

In a cutesy office landscape, fiddling with a cartoon mascot pen, Therese was doomed to another hard to please customer. The dream of finally hitching the nightmare Pentu with a similar type snapped already. The matchmaker almost broke her pen.

“Why are you sorry?” asked Therese, already knowing why.

“I’m afraid I’m no longer in need of your services. I married a couple of weeks ago.”

Gaim stirred from the couch, glancing towards the kitchen in slight confusion.

“I see. Congratulations! That’s amazing Miss Pentu, and you know we’ve all been cheering for you.” lied the professional woman on the other end, drawing a black cloud in her pad. “Are your parents happy to hear the news?”

“Oh… I haven’t told my parents yet.”

“Ahahahaha, you’ve always been a funny one, Miss Pentu!”

There was a beat of awkward silence. Then Therese picked up the chase again, doing her damn job.

“Then I won’t be sending you his form. It’s better not to know what you’ve missed, wouldn’t you say? Besides, it would be impolite to your dear husband to look at other men by now, ahahah. Instead I’ll send you our evaluation form. It would be a great service if you filled this out, so that Fateful Connections gets some feedback as to why we couldn’t help you.”

“Oh, but you helped, I’m very thankful-”

“Yes! Thank you! But forgive me, I have a call on the other line. Have a pleasant evening!”

Pentu stood dumped in the kitchen, looking down at her phone in… It was hard to place the feeling. She settled on the nagging reminder that she would have to call all of the marriage agencies and unsubscribe from their services.

“Who was that?” Gaim asked.

“A marriage agency. I forgot to tell them I’ve got you now.”

Gaim’s heart skipped a beat. The innocent phrasing of ‘having’ someone was apparently enough for this. He sat up and scratched his head.

“Yeah right. Uhm, I listened in a bit, and there’s something that stood out… You haven’t told your parents about me, have you?”

“Not a word…” Pentu finally looked up from her phone, dark eyes wide in guilt. “That’s bad isn’t it?”

“I mean it’s weird! But we can fix that. You just have to like… Let me meet your parents.” Gaim did his very best to smile. This was ‘good boyfriend points’ for sure, get involved, meet her parents, you like her, it will be obvious, you love her, say you like her! He cleared his throat. “I’d love to have a video call with them or something.”

Pentu already had her phone to her ear. Gaim startled, splaying out like a scared spider on the couch.

“Are you calling them now?!”

“Shhhh!” Pentu reprimanded. In a whisper away from her phone she replied: “No, I’m calling the other marriage agencies first. Let me do the easy part before attempting the hard stuff!”

They didn’t call that night. Pentu texted her mother to arrange for a video call with both mom and dad at the ready. It would happen in two days, as tonight was no good. Tomorrow was the last day of the Dragon’s Den case, and overtime was  _ scheduled _ for the bidding. Her mother was curious as to why, but didn’t pry. They would see each other soon!

Over dinner Pentu and Gaim discussed the implications of the call. Gaim supposed he ought to clean up his act a bit, shave and put on his best shirt and so on. While these ideas seemed to calm Pentu she kept worrying over something. Gaim pried, but she didn’t want to tell him. She was preoccupied with the fact that telling her parents would undoubtedly alert Krev that he had lost the bet. Even if the rules laid it down straight, she had no idea what his reaction would be, or what it would bring him to do.

If there’s one thing which occupied the conversation more honestly was how much they wanted to tell of their truth. There was no point trying to paint Gaim as more than he was. He didn’t have a college degree and that was a fact. But it wasn’t necessary to trouble her parents with the debts, or Shemeshka’s interference which brought about their marriage. It would only make things weird…

The next day Gaim spoke up at breakfast:

“Hey, do you have another question for me?”

“Yes, do you?” Pentu replied, calm still under control. “I’d like you to go first, honestly.”

“Alright. Do you like men?”

Pentu dropped her fork. She looked up at her husband, heteronormative reality imposing itself so hard that her face made it seem he had asked if she could fly.

“Gaim, why wouldn’t I like men?”

“Is that your question?” he chuckled. “No, really, I was just wondering. You’ve been living a pretty suppressed life, and it wouldn’t be  _ impossible _ that you might be an unaware closeted lesbian. If you are, I’d like to know, and… Yeah.”

“I can assure you that I’m not.” Pentu said, curtly. She closed her hands in her lap and looked away. “I’ve had boyfriends before, you know. Even if I haven’t had sex I’ve kissed, cuddled and… Been tempted to have sex, I would suppose. We never took our clothes off. I don’t know if I like women, but I am very sure that I like men. There. I’ve proved it.”

Looking back to Gaim, he was jazzin’ about. The morning coffee-grog in his hand was dancing about the air before he took a victorious gulp. After swallowing it he smirked at her, a dangerous glint in his eyes.

“You just answered a week’s worth of questions, Pentu.” he said. “I know it’s not a game, but it feels like I’m winning.”

Pentu blushed and sighed. Gaim chuckled, and offered some simple encouragement. After recovering she faced him again, a bit of gothic roses still on her gray cheeks.

“Here’s my question… Do you have anyone you like?”

Gaim’s heart was pierced on Cupid’s rapier, the thin sword sliding an arm’s length in to lodge itself in his chest. This was the time.

“Yeah. Of course.”

He nodded. His eyes were paired with hers, and the moment had come. All she had to do was ask who.

She nodded. Her eyes retreated once more. She didn’t ask today.

“Shall we get going then? It’s about time to wash up if we want to catch our usual train.”

That day Gaim hid in the office toilet, downing a secret bottle of booze, cursing himself to hell and back. He should have said it, damnit!


	18. Does Your Life Suck?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gaim has a big sad on a toilet. The Real Estate agency finally sell the Dragon's Den. Andi teases Gaim about having a crush. Pentu doesn't get it. They reveal the marriage and why it came about. Pentu doesn't get it. Tindré calls Gaim up to invite him drinking. Alone in the apartment Pentu has time to think, to maybe get it... Gaim has a drunken heart to heart with Tindré about not giving up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was extra long, because I could not stop the story until it felt right. I hope you still enjoy your read? We're many tens of thousand words in by now, and I keep telling myself I have the end in sight... But how far does my elven eyes see?

Gaim exhaled an invisible cloud of alcoholic vapours. The familiar seat of the office toilet-lid was his shitty throne. Maybe he was the “shit king” on this shitty day. The bottle graced him with another swig. The king was a clown, and with no voice in his throat his lips recited the scene from that morning in a mocking toneless tone:

‘Do you have anyone you like?’ - ‘Yeah. Of course’ was read in truth to reality. 

But the next line was clearly ad-lib in this toilet theatre:

‘The person I like is right in front of me, sleeps in the room next door, sits across from me at work and somehow married me. I haven’t told them because I’m not supposed to be here, sleep there, or even work wherever she sets her foot because fucking shit god damn idiot…”

When Gaim started getting worried about the time he corked the bottle back up, hid it in the loo-roll cabinet, and started preparing to face reality again. He was drunk, but in a practiced manner. All he needed to freshen up was the right mindset and a bit of water splashed on his face.

During that pathetic washing up in the sink he thought of the train to work.

“... Why did the marriage agency call you yesterday?” The thought and question had come more than ten hours after the fact, but it hadn’t stopped Gaim from voicing them.

“Oh, nothing important.” Pentu tried to keep it brief. When she succumbed to silent pressure she elaborated: “Apparently they had gotten a new client who they thought would fit me. 80% match they said. But it’s too late now, and such estimates are always more positive than reality suggests in my experience.”

The gith faced himself in the mirror. His wet face looked awful in the 90 watt light. What was his percentage to match her? He chuckled, and the exhale splashed a couple of droplets onto his reflection. At once the clean mirror now looked dirty. It fit his image. He was the shit king, drunk at work and lamenting something he had the power to change.

“Tonight. God fucking damn you, tonight!” he threatened himself, using his voice in a low whisper.

A strong knock was heard on the bathroom door. Gaim exited shortly after, prepared for the worst. Thankfully it was only Bifrost tipping about on his heavy hooves.

“My body might be big, but there’s limits to everything.” he politely accused, obviously having prepared that ambiguous line for some time..

“Ah, sorry. I lost track of time.”

“It has been half an hour. But don’t worry, the bidding is running smoothly.” The centaur entered the bathroom and did a tight turn around to close the door. “We just broke a hundred million.”

Large numbers like this had stopped phasing the team. Throughout the Dragon’s Den deal they had become jaded. Gaim only raised his eyebrows slightly before heading back into the office.

Evening time was rarely seen in this locale. According to Wilford’s wishes overtime was rare, but this night was the exception. Outside the sun was setting over the cityscape. The little hub of light and familiarity inside Found Dragon Real Estate was a golden gem in a pink hued purple sunset.

All of the bidding was done online, and besides answering calls with last minute questions all the crew had to do was wait and decide when to call the results. The fierce rise in price had been going on the whole day. Now by evening there were a handful of bidders still fighting each other by upping the price little by little… Or so Gaim thought.

Andi and Pentu were updating the graph on the white board where they had tracked the bidding over the course of the day. The steep rise in the beginning had pewtered out to a slow creep upwards when Gaim went to the toilet, but just now they were drawing a sharp upwards turn. It was so sharp and tall that they hit the roof of their graph.

“I think we’ll have to erase this and start over…” Pentu confessed. 

“Wait, I have to call this bidder. Maybe there was a mispress!” Andi fervently excused. “They just added five million from out of nowhere. Maybe they meant five hundred thousand?”

With Andi back at the phone, Pentu took a series of pictures of her progress so far. Gaim went up to the whiteboard with impeccable balance. He wasn’t drunk, no no no.

“Should I erase this?”

“Yes please, I could use a short rest. It actually strains your wrist to do this.” Pentu said.

Earlier in the day, before Gaim got wasted, they had held a company wide competition as to who could draw the straightest lines. Pentu had won, with Bifrost on a close second. Andi kept bending the ends of her lines. Wilford was shaky on crutches. Gaim had honestly not really been trying, since he knew the prize would be white board labour. Now he did try to sweep the surface clean with fluid, slightly bent strokes. Shaking in his grip now could betray how wasted the shit king truly was.

Andi hushed the entire office. Then she pressed the speaker on her phone. The bidder’s high, posh voice rung out for all to hear.

“- next time anyone outbids us, we will do it again! The entire party is laughing their hearts out to this, and we have games to see who will need to pitch in the next five million.”

A rumble of revelry was faintly heard in the background.

“I see. Thank you for your clear answer, I was just calling to check in.” Andi politely spoke.

“No please darling! It’s so nice to hear from you. Our court is happy to win this case of yours, because trust me, we will win.” cooed the caller. “Ah, sorry, it is about time for me to hang up. Someone just placed a higher bid. Ta-tah!”

The click of the phone didn’t mark the start of any conversation. Everyone was comprehending what they had heard. Andi took a deep breath.

“Apparently they’re a court of Eladrin… Sorry for putting them on speakers, I just wanted you both to hear this so I wouldn’t be able to think I was going crazy.”

“Sudden death against the 5 million per bid…” Gaim mumbled.

Bifrost joined them, and got to hear the news. The jaded cast couldn’t tell if it were good or bad news, but settled for just news. The eladrin court struck again. Someone fought back. Five million once more. The bidding came to a standstill and the real estate agency sent out an announcement that if any bid stood uncontested for half an hour it would win.   
This gave them plenty of time to work on the white board graph. To be fair, this was a superfluous task which was mostly for show. They intended to have it as a backdrop when they took a celebratory photo later, when Wilford returned with the sushi. Overtime, but for an office party to celebrate the end of a great deal of work.

“Haaaah… I can’t believe it is almost over.” Bifrost sighed.

“I’m glad.” Pentu piped in. She was putting the finishing touches on the graph. “They say hardship brings people closer, and… Maybe I’m being a bit sappy, but thanks to this sale I am no longer ‘new at work’ anymore.”

“Oh, no definitely, you’ve earned your space now.” Bifrost agreed. “We’re glad to have you here.”

“We are.” repeated Andi with a mischievous wink at Bifrost. “You’ve brought plenty of perks to the office. I think your lunch boxes are amazing. Don’t you think so too, Gaim?”

The gith perked up. He realised something was up. Wide open eyes under furrowed brows looked around the room.

“Yeah? Pentu’s a great cook. We’ve both said this.”

“We have! It’s like she’s our little doting wife.”

Gaim’s heart dropped. Pentu felt a similar sensation, but kept up appearances..

“You think so?” she asked amicably, looking only at Andi. Looking at Gaim would give her away but… “I guess I am a doting wife, aren’t I?”

“Yes, and we’re very grateful.” Andi gave Pentu a nod which only meant one thing. This was payback. This was when Andi was getting back at Gaim for embarrassing her, whether he remembered it or not. The angle of embarrassment chosen for this act of revenge was apparently… Pentu? Unbeknownst to Andi, it struck way closer to home than intended.

Bifrost was in on it.

“Hehe, I remember how bitter Gaim was when Pentu first started here. But wouldn’t you say you’ve warmed up now?” The centaur’s acting was better than Andi’s. He feigned true innocence as a well meaning friend, hiding his bittersweet revenge story beneath his mask.

Both of their attacks struck the shit king in his blind spot. A drunken blush was rising. Gaim pushed himself away on his rolly chair, arms crossed in defense.

“I just take some time with anyone new. Pentu isn’t special.” he lied.

The comment made Pentu crack a little. She turned to him. In the midst of the battle she had switched sides.

“I’m not special?” asked his wife.

“Shit! Why are you all putting me on the spot all of a sudden?” Gaim flailed, accusing in all directions like a lone ranger in a four way mexican standoff. His drunken slur was starting to show. “So what if I like Pentu? She’s not new anymore, she’s just a coworker like the rest of you!”

“Oh, yes, a coworker like the rest of us.” Andi, mockingly.

“A coworker like you and me.” Bifrost, confidently.

“A coworker, yes.” Pentu, faintly.

“You’re all making it weird!” Gaim, loudly.

“Sushi is here.” Wilford, enter from the centre stage.

The interruption of their boss returning was truly a godsend to the whole situation. The standoff dispersed. Apparently it was tradition to never eat celebration sushi in the break room, but to dine on the CEO’s desk.

Gaim and Pentu were fetching glasses and plates in the kitchen, alone.

"I thought we weren't going to tell them." said he.

"We haven't… But maybe we should?" said she.

"I don't want Andi making those weird comments. Fuck it, I say go! If you manage to bring it up I will follow."

"Why can't you take the lead?"

"I don't trust myself to do it, Pentu." Gaim cringed. "I'll probably chicken out unless you put me on the spot."

That was an explanation enough for Pentu. When Gaim followed the back of her head he realised the irony of his self awareness. How many times hadn't he chickened out already in regards to confessing? No matter. Tonight. Tonight he would do it.

Snap! Went the flash of the self timer camera. The entire office relaxed while Andi ran over to check the results. With the graph in the background and the sushi visible in front, the entire crew stood smiling like a school photo to commemorate this moment. Coincidentally the latest bid had just passed the half hour mark. It was done. The apartment had been sold!

“Cheers!” cried the whole company.

“So the court of eladrin won?”

“There’s strength in numbers.”

“Well at least there’s plenty of room to house them.”

“Oh yeah, I’m sure they’ll love the place.”

It didn’t matter who spoke or said what. It was just pleasant chatter. Everyone dug into the luxurious selection of sushi, and talked inbetween bites just to make noise. It was as impersonal as can be.

The personal side came when the meal was nearing completion. Gaim kept eyeing Pentu, wondering if she would bring their secret up. Andi kept eyeing Gaim eyeing Pentu, and got a couple of more jabs in at that. Still there was no protest from the married couple. Gaim was getting impatient, and slightly more sober. Both of those things were putting him in a bad mood.

“So with a final price of just about a hundred and ten million, our commission of ten percent is… Eleven million?” Bifrost asked in a simple headcount.

“Yep.” Wilford made a happy old man grunt. “I knew it would be fine.”

“What on earth will we do with eleven million?” Andi asked.

Wilford grumbled in thought before suggesting: “Touch up the office? Renovations?”

“We could move to an entirely new office.” Gaim interjected.

“No, don’t want that.” said Wilford firmly. “I like this street.”

There was a pause of good cheer before their boss continued on: “By all means we don’t have to do anything special with the money. It is good to have money, as safety in case Shemeshka tries something.”

Pentu perked up. “I think Shemeshkas first bribe to us was ten million… Well, we’ve earned that much, but she tried much higher numbers after that.”

Wilford nodded. Bifrost shook his head.

“It’s frightening how much money that yugoloth has.” complained the centaur. “The fact that she broke Wilford’s leg too scares me. What could she possibly do next?”

“Actually, I say we got away scot free, even with the broken leg.” Andi bitterly implied. A shudder ran down her spine as she vividly envisioned worse outcomes. “She didn’t even do much after that, did she?”

“Uhm, actually…”

Everyone turned to Pentu. Gaim tried to keep it in, but had to let out a cough. That noise only made the silence feel more pressing. Pentu cast Gaim a glance before finding her words again.

“She did visit that morning when Wilford was run over, remember? During that meeting… I would say she tried something. Me and Gaim won that fight, but… I would say it came at a cost.”

“What happened?” Bushy eyebrows drawn, frowning moustache tense. Wilford’s defensive fury was already plain for anyone to see.

“She tried to hire me.” said Gaim. His palms were sweaty.

“Forcibly.” Pentu added. “She brought up blackmail, but offered Gaim a way out by taking her offer… In hindsight I can tell how she figured that plan would be watertight.”

Most people around the table could guess, on a hunch, that  _ She  _ would have paid to see Wilford’s reaction. His fury deflated like a sorrowful balloon. Shemeshka had been out to hurt Wilford, and even when she hadn’t succeeded it harmed his gentle heart. The small hooded eyes of the old man appeared to be tearing up.

“How did you resist?” Andi asked Gaim softly.

“I uh… Did my best.” Gaim replied. Nervousness made him squirm in his seat. “To be honest I was close to caving in, before Pentu saved me.”

“Saved you how?”

Gaim didn’t answer. Everyone turned to Pentu.

“I married him.”

The cat was out of the bag, and doing cartwheels around the table. Whatever moment of inadverted sorrow Wilford had been experiencing was over now.

Gaim was mortally embarrassed. Unable to stand the silence he groaned and leaned forward to hide his face.

“Okay, so it was mostly about money.” he started. “I have some debts, some that not even Wilford knows about, and Shemeshka went there. The whole idea was that, uh, if me and Pentu work together as a legally married team, with both of our finances, we can clear the debts and prove Shemeshka wrong.”

“It has been going well so far!” Pentu continued. “I’m sorry for keeping it secret from you all, but naturally the lunch boxes are part of this. It’s a way to save money on food, but already sharing my apartment is cutting costs dramatically so-”

“WHAT?” Andi finally shouted. “You’re  _ MARRIED AND LIVE TOGETHER? _ ”

Bifrost reached to push Andi back into her seat, but the small tiefling stood her ground.

“Hey now-”

“Is that why it’s so weird between you two?!”

“Tshj- Could you stop talking about it?!” Gaim protested.

“No! I want to talk about it! You’re married!”

“So you’ve noticed after all.” Pentu shyly laughed. This girly reaction pacified Andi enough to sit back down.

“I’m honored…” Wilford said. “That you would go so far for my company.”

Pentu choked for a moment.

“Well, there’s more to it, but most of that is private.”

“It’s not weird.” Gaim pitched in. “We might be married, but I’m sleeping on her couch.”

“But… I thought you were in love.” said Bifrost shyly.

Gaim felt cupid gut his kidneys with a knife. Say it. He’s right.

Pentu laughed dismissively.

“No, we’re just friends. Married or not, I’ve only known Gaim for about two months.”

The pain of the stab faded fast. Instead Gaim felt… Nothing. For a moment at least.

Bifrost chuckled. “It’s rare that I hear a couple of newlyweds say that.”

“It is, isn’t it?”

Pentu laughed again. Now the feeling of despair washed over Gaim properly. His lungs tightened up and refused to breathe.

“But how do you like Gaim?” asked Andi.

“Oh he’s great, actually.” The dark eyes with their yellow pupils pierced the man in question. He tried to smile back at them, and poorly managed. Pentu unknowingly twisted the knife. “He’s a good companion, and I won’t mind spending the rest of my life with him platonically.”

It couldn’t get clearer than this. Gaim was publically getting friend-zoned by his wife. He wanted an excuse to escape. He wanted to lock himself back up in a bathroom and cry. Pentu’s happy disposition had no idea of what she made him feel.

Like a message from god, Gaim’s phone started buzzing. Someone was calling.

“Oop, sorry, gotta take this.” said the gith as he rose. “Pentu, tell them about Ragnhild witnessing the wedding or whatever, that’s pretty funny.”

Nobody saw through his ruse, and Gaim escaped to the break room. The conversation from the office was cheery and loud even through two closed doors. Gaim wiped his eyes before checking what number it was.

“Tindré?”

“Hii Gaim~” purred the she-devil. “I just saw social media report that you finally sold the apartment. That’s quite a hefty price you got for it in the end, isn’t it?”

“Yeah…” Head spinning, Gaim tried to think faster, hurry it up to cut the small talk, to finally end up at the result and reason Tindré called. “You want to go out drinking to celebrate?”

“Yes! Exactly that, yes! You have time, I know that much.”

“I’m short on cash.”

“Really? Your company just made a fat buck, wouldn’t you say?”

“It hasn’t been paid out yet… But hey, cover for me tonight. I promise it will be worth it.”

“Oh?” Tindré smiled through the receiver. “Is this about  _ her _ ?”

“You bet’cha.” Now Gaim’s voice wavered. The shit king was still a clown, dancing to the tune of the world’s mocking laughter. “I have so much to tell you.”

Cleaning up the office didn’t take long when everyone helped. Thanks to the phone call Gaim had avoided more conversation about the topic that everyone cared about. Pentu had carried the conversation and told enough tales of their supposed matrimonial happiness that they didn’t pester him about it. All he got were well meaning smiles and slight pats on the back. Wilford seemed proud, but it was hard to tell the depth of that emotion or what it meant.

When they were gathering up their bags Gaim spoke up.

“You go home Pentu. Tindré asked me out to drink with her to celebrate the Dragon’s Den.”

“Oh?” The news was fresh, and ready to be scrutinized. “What about money?”

“She’s gonna pay, don’t worry.” Gaim took a sharp inhale. “I think I’m going to tell her tonight too. It feels easier now that everyone at work knows.”

“Should I come along?”

“No!” Fuck, that was way too loud. Gaim tried to backtrack. “I mean, she doesn’t know you. It’s hard enough to say I’m married. Introducing you and like, having you sit there the whole time is gonna make her uncomfortable, I’m sure.”

“Okay, you know her best.” Pentu fiddled a bit with her bag. “From highschool, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah we go way back.” He turned to leave her. “But enjoy your night at home. Don’t wait up for me.”

“Okay.”

Just like that they part ways for the first time in weeks. He walked off towards the bar, and she headed to the train station. During her ride home Pentu couldn’t help to wish she had someone to talk to. Without him there the train seemed so empty.

But that was nothing compared to the apartment. Pentu was home alone. The solitude she found herself in had become so rare ever since she got married. It was… Slow. Her breaths were slow, her heart was calm. Was there really such a difference in her physical wellbeing when Gaim wasn’t there? She couldn’t tell. Looking out over the apartment she could see all of his stuff, the couch-turned-bed and the slight traces of messiness he spread around him. It was like he was here, even when he was not.

Pentu’s memory snapped back to the silent night when Krev had stayed over, and he had slept on the couch just like Gaim. That made her heart beat faster in fear.

Unable to stand the silence she turned on the TV. It was set to Gaim’s most watched channel. The white noise filled the void. Even when she closed herself off inside the bathroom she heard the comforting gaggle of evening variety shows. Still, she knew that she had lived with silence comfortably before he entered her life. What had happened?

There was plenty of time to think about this while she took her bath.

It had all begun with the stapler. First impressions aside, that was the moment when he showed who he was. Pentu really hadn’t liked him at all back then. Then he had gotten upset about the accounting, but ultimately that fight did make him a bit more likeable. After that initial hurdle of anger he was capable of expressing his wishes and wants. Pentu thought back to the afternoon of him sitting next to her, pointing out numbers and combing out her little mess. It had been nothing but work. There was no way she could have guessed she would marry him at that point.

At the karaoke night she ought to have gotten a bit of a clue. Pentu tipped the pail of water over her head for a final rinse. She almost wished she could have a taste of apple-juice water in order to honour the memory. He had been sweet even back then. Slowly she sank into the tub. The warm sensation matched the feeling which was growing in her stomach.

After that her entire memory felt jumbled. The chronology of Gaim was helplessly intertwined with the feud against Shemeshka, the attempt to date Xigmund, and the sweet presence of Kei. She still didn’t know why Gaim babysat Kei once a week. Maybe she ought to ask, not that she was complaining or anything… The presence and care of an angel exposed a very soft side of Gaim.

Zoning in on the next memory she thought of when Gaim made Andi topple the water cooler. He could be mean. That cold water was the antithesis to her current situation… But that fight had been important. She had been able to argue with Gaim back then. Could that have been a sign of a budding marriage? Cynical, but worth a thought.

Thinking back on it she knew that Gaim had avoided her a little afterwards, obviously ashamed of the whole thing. The next time they truly talked was after the izakaya party. The flash image of Gaim sleeping on the train made Pentu’s heart leap. She had been so bashful about seeing a tiny bit of neck, as well as his sleeping face. Living together made that commonplace, even if they weren’t dating-

Pentu just remembered. She had forgotten it in an attempt to quell her hopes, and then forgotten it harder because of Shemeshka forcing the marriage. Everything had been so stressful… But Gaim had said in his drunken wooze that ‘people might think they were dating’. For a brief moment, Pentu had hoped they could. He had been so close to her, draped over her shoulder. That was technically half of an embrace. Now her heart beat faster.

With all of these premarital scenes assembled, Pentu rose out of the water. Her skin was hot and wet, just like the realisation that maybe… Maybe she was falling in love with her husband. Maybe, just maybe, he liked her too? In all of these memories he had been more or less nice, growing closer by the day, and this was just before their marriage and…

The cold air outside the bathroom electrified Pentu’s senses, but didn't snap her out of her fit. She walked naked to the fridge, ripping it open and grabbing something strong. It was the carton of apple juice. In nothing but her birthday suit she drank down the sweet, sticky taste of undiluted fruit.

After all of these years, she kind of liked it.

After all of this time, she kind of loved him.

The TV played a plastic laugh track.

Her panic set in when she rushed back into the bathroom, possessed by the fear that someone might see her naked. Safe behind locked doors she breathed it out. What if Gaim had come home at that moment? 

To her surprise the thought didn't make her heart freeze in fear. It made her chest clench and her stomach fill with butterflies. 

“I… Am… Sorry… But… I… Will… Come… Home… Real… Late.” Gaim narrated as he composed his text. Tindré was hanging over him.

"Add a heart!" Urged the literal devil on his shoulder.

"Nooo…"

"You're drunk, she will think nothing of it."

Gaim pressed send. No heart. With an airy burp he sank back down on the bar counter. The spot was already stained by his spit. Tindré laughed at him, far above him. After telling the whole story, and dealing with her reaction to it, their drinking party had ended up rather cheerful… At least cheerful for Tindré, less so for Gaim. He hated himself, despite being smashed and properly marinated in whatever witch-brew all of his drinks made in his stomach.

“Oh come on Gaim.” Cooed Tindré, also drunk. “Laugh a little. You’ll get over it, all you have to do is convince Pentu she’s wrong.”

“About what?”

“About that whole living together platonically thing.” She sipped and kissed the edge of her glass for a spell. “Say, if I somehow got married to a stranger, and had to stay in that relationship for the foreseeable future, I would never settle for being  _ friends _ ! You live together! With all that time in close proximity you have all the chances in the world to seduce her.”

“No! No… I… Fuck…” Gaim had a hard time speaking with his head against the counter. His raised finger sank down again.

“Okay, fine I get you. Seduce is the wrong word since she’s such a pissy virgin.”

“She’s pure… I don’t deserve her.” moaned Gaim. “I shouldn’t go home ever again.”

The devil cackled and rattled her scorpion tail. “I thought alcohol was supposed to fill you with courage.”

“Not when I’m already filled with sorrow.”

“Then let it out?”

“I’m a washed up gang-beat prostitute.”

“Oh hush!” Tindré gave him a slap on his head. “You make it sound like you didn’t do the most of the beating. And regarding the latter,  _ I took care of that _ , and I know I told you to never worry about it again. It never happened, and the scum would say the same in court.”

“Shuure…” he slurred as he sat back up again. “But you can’t deny it happened to me. I never got fucking… Threath- Treathened with legal and mortal death? I just got a pat on the back and a wink. You fucking sucked before you were a  _ real _ lawyer.”

“So it’s my fault now?”

“Noooo… No. It’s my heavy conscience.” he rubbed his forehead. “Pentu is still too good for me. Prove that wrong, and I owe you.”

“Gaim, I think you already owe me enough. Although, I could send you to therapy?”

“Cheers.”

“Cheers, yes, but honestly, I don’t want to. I like you as the scrappy piece of shit you’ve always been.”

“Huh, some friend you are.”

Tindré giggled. Her tail reached over to rest on Gaim’s back, this third arm carrying more threat than intimacy.

“What I’m trying to say is that you’re good enough. You’re likeable. Trust me, you are! I wouldn’t be surprised if Pentu has already acquired a bit of taste for you.”

“Yeah, I quote, as a good companion.” He slammed the other half of his drink to feel the burn. “Thanks though… It’s nice to know that someone… Believes in me, I guess.”

“There are plenty of people who do. Say, I think Wilford must be up in airs now. He’s the one who brought you together, quite literally.”

Gaim’s gaze was glossy. He stared at nothing, reflecting the myriad of bottles in the bar in his eyes. The drunken body swayed.

“But I let him down. I hid most of my debt from him. I thought I could manage them with the help he already gave me. I didn’t.”

“Did he seem particularly let down?”

“No…”

“Good, then just learn from your regrets and do better. Don’t hide anything from Pentu.”

Sometimes, the words of a friend can straighten everything out. The world never seems as convoluted and harsh when someone is by your side. The weeks of marriage where Gaim fought this battle alone now seemed childish. He should have gone to Tindré sooner.

Sometimes all you need is a friend.

Pentu had no friends, and could not sleep. With a thousand thoughts buzzing like fireflies, she laid awake, waiting for Gaim to come home.


	19. Mind the Gap

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gaim is hungover. Pentu is nervous. Why? Gaim had a blackout during his night out at the bar with Tindré. What happened during those missing memories? And how do they deal with the aftermath? It's shoujo-bullshit.

Anyone’s perception of reality relies on the function of short term and long term memory. You can imagine what you thought about just this previous minute, to a degree. The ever ticking time is aptly called a stream of consciousness. Your everyday thoughts flow from second to second, moment to moment, scene to scene… In the long term memory, you get summarised scenes, like a well enough scribbled map of where you have been and where you didn’t go. The streams solidify, and become proper memories. The now becomes then, later becomes now. Memory is vital for our perception of time.

When Gaim gets black out drunk, reality itself seems to have shifted around him. The Gaim of the drunken now leads no worse life for it, no he oftentimes is told to enjoy it by the witnesses who remembered it for him. But the later Gaim, robbed of those memories, looks at the map of the streams and curses where the lines don’t connect. He fears the blank space. He finds them in the haze of a hangover, and everything hurts.

The daylight hurt. The sound of the frying pan hurt. His sweaty skin didn’t hurt everywhere, but the slick naked shoulder blades had been rubbed sore by his twisting and turning on the couch. His elbows hurt? His stomach ached. At least he was home. He didn’t wake up in a gutter, or a drunk cell, or with a stranger. Through his squinting eyes he could see the shape of Pentu cooking in the kitchen. His heart hurt.

“Guuh-” he burped, hastening his rising from the couch. He didn’t have much time. “Good morning!”

With that proper greeting said, the gith tumbled like a newborn calf through the room, racing himself without grace to the bathroom. The door shut, didn’t lock, but softly dampened the sound of his retching by the toilet. It was bad. Pentu could still hear it.

Luckily, Pentu didn’t listen. She was caught up in the stream of her own consciousness. The thoughts were loud enough to block out the rest of the world, at the cost of making her cheeks burn like the frying pan she tended to. She remembered everything.

Gaim spat out some acid lingering in his mouth, flushing for the first time. The water ran clear soon enough, and with that he tried to clear his mindscape himself. He still remembered how happy Tindré had been to give him advice, and how she kept buying drinks for both of them. He remembered asking her to stop. Then came the blackness. She had told a great joke, the contents of which escaped him, and when they both laughed together everything disappeared.

He remembered being woken up on the train by a college girl, an elf with a tennis bag. It had been dark out. There was no memory of falling asleep, but he had been woken up alright, which implies that a slumber had occurred in the nearly comfortable train seats before then. The tennis-elf had told him it was his stop, and it was. He shouted some thanks and threw himself off the train as if the doors were closing that very moment. They weren’t. He had tripped in the gap between the car and the platform, and landed on his elbows. Everyone had looked at him when he crawled back onto his feet, but nobody moved to help him. He watched the doors close and the train had rolled away. Then he remembered laughing again, adrenaline coursing in his veins, and that was all. The next he knew he woke up in a sweaty distress on the couch...

Gaim took a deep breath, and found more bile to expel. Between each heave he took deep breaths. With a curious peek he saw the beat up scrapes on his forearms. At least the few memories he had seemed accurate. A loud groan was heard from the slumped shape cradling the toilet seat. How the Shit king had fallen.

Tracing back the river of happenings, our narrative can observe the Gaim of the previous night. After being loud enough to bother the other patrons of the bar, Tindré and Gaim had finally decided to call it a night. Tindré got a cab, but Gaim refused to ride with her. She had already spent so much money on his, hiccup, good time. That’s why Gaim rode the train, and immediately upon boarding he announced to all of the passengers where he needed to get off. For a sober person that was excruciatingly embarrassing. For a drunk person it was a stroke of genius, since he entrusted his fellow commuters to help him. He knew he needed help.

“I’ll tell my wife I love her… Not just like her, I fucking love her. I’ll tell my wife I love her...” he mumbled, before drifting off to his short train nap.

The elf with the tennis bag had found this endearing, and proved to be the hero he needed. When Gaim got off the train, as dramatically as it had happened, she genuinely wished his wife wouldn’t be upset at his torn shirt sleeves. Gaim didn’t offer his damaged clothes a single thought. His head was empty. Gaim was so drunk he hardly cared about the stinging pain that was brought with the fall.

Through the late summer night, he walked unsteadily, sang in rhythm to his swaying steps, and felt great. Everything would be fine, as soon as he told Pentu he loved her. She would love him too, and they would kiss. The giddy joy of this thought made him hug a streetlamp. It got a quick peck on its thin metal cheek before he kept dancing home.

But somewhere he tripped again. This time he slammed his hip into a trash can. This hurt, and was loud enough to rouse Gaim to caution. After putting the trash can upright again, Gaim took in his surroundings properly. The city ambience was sleepy. No windows had lit up in his noisemaking, which honestly deserved a complaint. Everyone was sleeping. Pentu was probably sleeping. He had to be quiet.

His keys rattled against the door. He searched frantically for the key hole, which was not where it was supposed to be. The muscle memory expected his old apartment’s door, and was thus five centimetres too low. After mumbling a swear he crouched and searched the door with his hands before finally guiding the key home.

The door swung open in complete silence, which in turn did make each step and shuffle of Gaim sound loud. Sandwiched between the closing door clicking, and the constant hum of the refrigerator, Gaim vowed to be quiet. He didn't want to wake Pentu.

Naturally, to outweigh his gallant promise to himself, Pentu was already awake. She had been tossing and turning in her own thoughts, unable to get a wink of sleep. It had been torture until she heard Gaim's struggle with the lock. Now she had a reason to be wide awake. She wanted to talk to him. 

As he tried to find the keyhole she had gotten up and anxiously corrected her hair in a mirror. She was ready and turned around to go greet him, yet she didn't. Pentu breathlessly heard Gaim enter her apartment, their apartment, his own home yet somehow intruding... All of the opposing thoughts made her freeze in inaction. They were married. She wanted to talk. But she was afraid of seeing him. All she could do was listen.

Gaim dropped his shoes with small thuds. He opened the bathroom door and winced in timing to the fluorescent tubes chiming to light. She could hear him use the sink for something, for a long while, but couldn’t tell what over the constant sound of the running water. The piping went inside the wall between her and him. All of the water’s running action seemed to mock Pentu’s inaction.

The next thing of note was how Gaim stubbed his toe on the way out of the bathroom. He held back his cry of pain, but still cursed loudly enough for Pentu to hear exactly what he said. A one legged hop deftly skipped through the apartment for a couple of steps. Gaim found the couch to crash on, still groaning slightly in pain.

Finally Pentu’s wavering heart found a reason enough to open her door. Carefully she stepped out in the dim light left on and seeping out of the bathroom door. Her shadow fell over the couch, and the husband who rested in it.

“Huh…” Gaim was the first to speak. Drunk out of his mind he simply looked up at her in wonder.

“Are you okay?” Pentu said.

“The pain’s fading. Nothing’s broken.” Gaim nodded. “But uhh… Sorry for waking you up.”

“Oh, you didn’t... I was still awake.”

The uncertain tension between them took a toll. As a response Gaim hid his face under one arm, groaning in obvious displeasure. Pentu didn’t really know what to do, so she stood her ground with more uncertainty apparent in her features. But Gaim had none of the same to offer her. He was certain enough to express himself bluntly:

“I don’t like that. I know I told you not to wait up. Never wait up for me, okay?”

Pentu was stunned for a moment. “I… Uh… I wasn’t waiting. I just couldn’t sleep…”

“Hey, when someone’s as much of a drunkard as me” Gaim took a brief pause to burp. “Then someone waiting up for them always means they’ll get scolded to hell and back when they get home.”

His wife nodded, thinking to herself that he was the one doing most of the scolding. But she could also see his point… Although in her rational sober mind the problem wasn’t the scolding, it was probably how drunk Gaim had gotten, being as much of a drunkard as he was right now. Faced with these accusatory thoughts she kept her mouth shut, to not fulfill his prophecy.

The gith rolled over in the couch, grumbling and grunting like a lesser pig.

“Do you want any water?” Pentu asked.

“Nah, nah… I’m good.”

“... How was Tindré?”

“Overjoyed!” Gaim let out as if it had been an expletive swear. “Ahahah… Oh man… I’ll tell you in the morning, it’s a lot.”

No reply came to that. It was an egging silence, begging Gaim to say more, something, anything about his night out with Tindré. Pentu stood with her fists clenched. She just couldn’t bring herself to ask if Tindré was the one who Gaim liked. It would be jealous, it would be something she herself would have hated if she was the one getting the question. Therefore she just waited. Please, say something. How does Tindré truly feel about your new wife Gaim? Pentu thought her question loud enough in the heart to scream its message through the silence.

But the drunk Gaim didn’t catch the pressing matter which Pentu’s heart shouted. Without paying much attention to the long term or short term streams of his consciousness, Gaim was now floating back towards Pentu waiting up for him. He rolled a little again, grunting in a pleasant way.

“I wish you were still asleep…” he said in a drunken drawl.

Thoughts flashed in Pentu’s head. He didn’t want her to be here.

“And then… Oh, well yeah, you might wake up a little, just a bit.” Gaim scratched his face, hiding the dumb dreamy grin he had. “You’ll just wake up enough when I go to bed, so that you can scoot a bit closer and make sure I’m covered by the blanket. That would be adorable.”

Thoughts froze in Pentu’s head. He wanted her to be… Where?

“... Is this your ideal welcome when you come home after a night out?” she asked for clarification.

“Yeah… I guess.” he burped again. Now he started squirming to actually get under that blanket he had on the couch, as if his fantasy had reminded him that he ought to make use of it.

“... And in that ideal welcome we sleep in the same bed?”

“Of course!” Gaim smiled through the wrestling with his blanket. “You’re my wife. We’ll get there someday.”

Pentu was now feeling the blush starting to burn on her cheeks.

“... Would you have sex with me?” she asked.

Risen from the dead by a strike of lightning, Gaim sat up on the couch to properly face her.

“No! Drunk sex fucking sucks, boners don’t last as well, and most of the time I don’t remember shit.” he explained to her in a frustated fury. “Can you imagine two drunk fucks trying to remember if they used a condom the morning after? That’s the worst kind of talk to have when you’re hungover!”

Pentu believed him, but was a little too caught up in the curious chemical reaction happening on her face. Most of her felt like it was paling and turning cold, yet her blush grew even hotter. Gaim could hardly see it in the backlighting from the bathroom, but Pentu felt convinced that he saw right through her.

Naturally, he didn’t. Flopping back down Gaim kept a finger raised to keep accusing her of unfounded things:   
“So don’t you dare take advantage of me in this state.” Yet another burp functioned as punctuation. “I’m gonna sleep.”

Finally his drunken irrationality broke through Pentu’s anxiety. She laughed at him. Through her lungs she released all of those worries and negative thoughts which had kept her up all night. What remained was that fuzzy feeling that she might just like him. She could be falling in love with her husband, and everything would be fine.

A similar feeling nestled in Gaim’s alcoholic heart. He had never heard her laugh like that until now, and unbeknownst to him in that moment, he wouldn’t remember it.

“I love you.” he told the ceiling where her laughter danced.

“What?”

“Always have… One way or another… You’re so cute.”

After saying that Gaim became an unresponsive wreck. His stream of consciousness safely flowed out into the sea of dreams. By the time Pentu had collected herself enough to ask questions about this brave statement, he was long gone.

Such flows the completed map of memories which Gaim sorely missed. He clutched the toilet seat once more, believing him to be still on square zero in terms of confessing to Pentu. At his current state he didn’t feel like he deserved to tell her of his feelings.

Pentu in question could hardly keep a straight face. How was she supposed to act? Did he remember? Will he confirm it if she asks? If she dares to ask? The underlying expectation was that she ought only to ask if she herself felt able to say “I love you too” and that made her heart flutter. She wanted to love her husband. Does that mean she does? Either way her face still struggled to keep cool.

Unable to look at his wife Gaim shuffled out of the bathroom. He had already brushed his teeth, but polishing the bone nubs when he felt empty inside hardly helped his mood. At the counter he found a glass of water, seemingly waiting for him. Without a question he took it and drank.

His reaction to the taste was comparable to the first time he had tricked Pentu into trying dilluted apple juice.

“Did you put my electrolyte tabs in this?”

“You mentioned they were good for hangovers.” Pentu shyly replied. “When we unpacked them from your stuff… You know?”

“Ah, yeah, I did say that.” Gaim recalled politely, before gulping down more from the glass. Wiping his mouth he found space to come clean. “Speaking of that… Uh, Memory. I don’t remember how I got home last night. Did I wake you?”

The giddy joy of Pentu was pulled out like a rug beneath her feet..

“Yes, but I didn’t leave bed.” She lied. To cover it up she threw on some truth: “It was about three am.”

“Damn… Sorry, I didn’t mean to stay out so late.” Gaim squinted to remember more. “But did you get my text?”

“I saw it this morning when I woke up. Thank you for sending it.” More lies. Pentu put the fried eggs on the plate with sliced bananas, the absurdity of the meal not escaping her. Finally she turned to face Gaim, if only because she had to in order to hand him the plate. “But I understood you had gotten very drunk, so I searched for various hangover cures. The net said protein and potassium is good.”

Gaim knew this very well. He accepted the plate. Gaim had never had the energy to fry eggs or slice bananas. He had taken them raw at times, the banana less desperately than the eggs. But holding this plate he was warmed from the inside and out. He lived with someone who cared now. It was love.

Before he knew it he was sitting down and eating. No words of gratitude escaped from his mouth, as the hole in his stomach was more acute than the hole of his heart. Even if he thought this to be love, maybe it was just an act of that platonic partnership Pentu had hit him with yesterday. Of all things to remember he clearly remembered that.

Anxious for something to do, Pentu fried more eggs. She would eat them unless he wanted more. It was fine. It wasn’t suspicious at all. To stand with her back turned and not say a word was just a way of giving him space. It’s not that obvious that she needed space herself to think of her own lies and deception.

Gaim wanted half the second batch of eggs. Pentu sat down to eat the rest with him. They were awkwardly silent at this point. She was the first one to take a deep breath.

“I realised yesterday that we had hardly spent any time apart since we got married.”

“Yeah, I thought about that too…” Gaim spoke while chewing. “Did you have a good time?”

“Good enough. It was odd to find the place silent though.” Pentu smiled weakly. “I put on the TV for background noise.”

This made Gaim softly giggle, more flattered than he was capable of showing. “So you’ve grown used to it, after all?”

“Yes… How was your time out with Tindré?”

“She was really upset at first.” Gaim said. “Then she laughed her ass off. She thinks this is funny. I think she even said it was only fair that I ended up married for some strange reason like this, but even Tindré couldn’t have imagined that Shemeshka had a hand in it.”

Gaim sighed, smiling. “But she sends her congratulations. She wants to meet you someday.”

Pentu nodded. Now in daylight she found her question less preposterous.

“Were you and Tindré ever…?”

“Nope. I avoided her sexually like the plague.” Gaim replied honestly. “When we were teenagers she was… Drama to say the least.”

His wife raised an eyebrow at his vague insinuations. Gaim sighed without a smile before he explained:

“You were either on her good side or her bad side, no inbetweens. We ran in the same gang back then, and I really liked fighting on the same team as her. She’s crazy strong, being a bone devil and all.”

This little fact made Pentu choke on her water.

“She’s what?”

“A bone devil. Born here in Sigilite-Tokyo, but she went to law school in hell and all.” Gaim said as if it was the most usual thing ever. “Anyway, the easiest way to stay on her good side was to not date her. Some of her exes had been kicked out of the gang. I found this out before I even met her so… No, never. We’ve always been just friends.”

This reality mocked all of the thousand stabbing fantasies Pentu had had of Tindré as the ‘one Gaim liked’, and his ‘high-school sweetheart’, etcetera. She knew they had been friends back then, sure, but not that they had been friends though that violent gang stuff that Gaim hardly ever talked about! Pentu felt stupid. Or maybe she was just tricked. One wouldn’t guess a current day lawyer had been up to… Such illegal stuff.

Gaim couldn’t help but giggle at Pentu’s shock.

“What, didn’t Bifrost or Andi tell you?”   
“I don’t think I asked.”

“Ah well…” Gaim rubbed his aching head. “She was happy for us. She thinks we will be happy together, since we’ve gotten along so far…”

Pentu nodded, expectantly.

“I... “ Gaim began. He failed, grunting at what he imagined was a sudden migraine. “Fuck, I’m beat. Really, I’m sorry for drinking so much yesterday. I usually avoid getting that sloshed.”

“It’s alright, it’s just…”

Gaim perked up, expectantly.

“What?”

“We have a video call scheduled to meet my parents in three hours.”

The entire man sank limply to the table, groaning in intense regret. He started profusely apologizing, not even noticing that Pentu left to do the dishes.

“I’m sorry, fuck I’m just the worst! I would have remembered it if it wasn’t for the thing with work yesterday, I’m just fucking urghhh. If I had told Tindré that I needed to be sober enough today she would have quit, I just didn’t remember, please forgive me, I’m just awful, I know.”

“Gaim.” Pentu called out from the kitchen. The man raised his head, surprised to see her a couple of metres away. His wife stood with her back straight. “I forgive you. It slipped your mind, and that’s okay. But right now I want to focus on curing your hangover as best as we can before the call.”

Gaim felt his heart beating in his chest. Pentu finally turned to him with a smile.

“Do you want more food or another nap?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final chapter written during 2020. Happy New Year!


End file.
